Falling
by CatielDeanFan
Summary: Ever since Verna moved back in, Shawn's home life has been falling apart. Things are about to get very ugly, and Shawn is going to be placed in serious danger.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This was a plot that ran through my head yesterday, so now it's a story! Rated high for violence.

"See you in school tomorrow?" Cory asked, as he and Shawn walked to his front door, dragging their feet so that their 'guys night' wouldn't end.

"Yeah, see you then." Shawn said, grinning at his best friend mischievously. Cory grinned back as the door closed and Shawn began his walk home. Shawn found his steps slowing considerably as he approached the trailer park. Shawn's home life just hadn't been going so well lately, all though, when had it ever? In fact, the only time Shawn could remember having a relatively stable home life was when he lived with John Turner.

Chet and Verna were getting to know each other again, and Shawn understood that, but he didn't know how much more of these arguments he could take. Somehow, the fights always got turned onto him, and Shawn inexplicably took the heat for something. The fights were getting ridiculous- last night his parents started ranting and raving about tooth paste! Tooth paste for goodness sakes!

There was also something else that was beginning to bother Shawn. His parents were starting to scare him a little. They were starting to get... violent. Lamps were being thrown across the trailer, his mom chased his father around the entire trailer with Shawn's baseball bat, and Shawn was sure that there was a reason Chet threw out their only metal knife.

Shawn sighed loudly, and contemplated just turning around and wandering the streets for a couple of hours when he approached his trailer and heard loud screaming inside. Shawn ran a hand through his hair and bit his lower lip. A breeze passed over him and Shawn shivered in the cold air for a couple of minuets before finally decided to go inside, but decided he would try to stay out of the conflict this time.

"You're nothing more then a pathetic dead beat Chet! I don't know why I ever came back!" Shawn pulled the door open to see Verna screaming in Chet's face. Chet had a beer can in his hand, although both were clearly drunk.

"Ah, shut up you old cow." Chet scoffed at her red face and took another swing of his beer. Shawn tried to close the door as quietly as he could so that he could slip unnoticed into his room, but Chet heard him and jumped at he chance to wave the attention off of himself. "Shawn, you're home late." Chet said, immediately turning away and stumbling to his bedroom. Chet knew that Verna just wanted someone to scream at, and that anyone would make a good target.

Shawn rolled his eyes at his father retreating back, feeling a little betrayed, but definitely not surprised. Chet had used Shawn as a target plenty of times lately and Shawn didn't anticipate an end to thatt anytime soon.

"Where were you?" Verna demanded, rounding on her son. Shawn shrugged out of his jacket, hung it on his hook and walked into the kitchen.

"I was at Cory's, okay?" Shawn answered, annoyance in his voice. Shawn was sick and tired of the way his mom was treating him and his dad. If Shawn knew she was going to be such a drama queen all the time, then he wouldn't have fought for her to come back.

Shawn went over to their fridge and grabbed a can of soda. Opening it, he sat down, took a drink, and put his feet up on the table.

"You don't talk to me like that young man." Verna said angrily, stalking towards Shawn, her face flushed with anger and her eyes furious.

"Whatever." Shawn mumbled passively, not wanting to fight. He took another sip of his soda and tried his hardest to ignore his mother.

Verna's eyes narrowed in fury and she strode forward with rage. Reaching Shawn she abruptly shoved his feet off of the table. Shawn jumped and spilled his soda over himself, the table and the kitchen floor.

"Mom! Now look at what you made me do!" Shawn said angrily, throwing his soda can in the sink so it would stop spurting soda over his already drenched shirt.

Out of nowhere, Verna drew her arm back and slapped Shawn as hard as she could across the face. Shawn gasped in surprise and his head reflexively drew to the side as he brought a hand up to his stinging cheek. Shawn's eyes filled with tears that he refused to let fall and he slowly looked back up at her, his face shocked and vulnerable.

"You apologize to me." Verna said. At the lack of response she slapped Shawn again and yelled, "Apologize to me!"

Shawn closed his eyes after the second slap and breathed heavily. He lowered his hand and bit his lower lip to stop himself from crying out. How could she do this to him? What was she thinking? Thousands of questions ran through Shawn's mind, but every instinct in him was telling him to pacify his mother. "I'm sorry." Shawn forced through gritted teeth, his eyes still closed. He felt another sharp blow connect to his face and Shawn hissed with fresh pain.

"Look at me when you talk to me." Verna demanded, her vision red with rage.

Shawn opened his eyes and stared at Verna in disgust. Shawn was shocked, and not just a little scared, by her actions tonight. Shawn had never been hit by either of his parents before and, frankly, Shawn didn't know what to do about it or even what to think about it. Verna was his mother, so she was supposed to do what was best for him, right?

"I'm sorry." Shawn said again, his voice choked as he stared at his mother with fear.

"And what are you sorry for?" Verna asked, her voice mocking. Shawn was struck with the sudden thought that she was enjoying this, but quickly dismissed the thought- it was too disturbing to consider.

"For..." Shawn hesitated, trying to remember how this all started. Shawn saw Verna's arm tense and flinched instinctively. Stumbling through his words, Shawn rambled whatever sounded good. "For being late and disrespectful and interrupting you and dad and spilling the soda, and..." Shawn ran out of ideas of what he could apologize for, but Verna appeared satisfied. He shut his mouth and lowered his head, watching her from behind his bangs.

"Good. Now clean up this mess." Verna said, pointing around the kitchen and grabbing another beer. Verna left the room and Shawn stayed where he was until he heard his parent's bedroom door close. Shawn let out a breath of relief that he hadn't been aware he was holding and looked around the kitchen with dismay. He breathed deeply for a few minuets, waiting for his elevated heart rate to return to normal. When it finally did Shawn wanted to change out of his sticky-drying clothes first, but was afraid to piss off Verna again and decided to just clean up the kitchen.

Shawn set to work. He threw away the now empty can of soda, washed out the sink, cleaned off the table and mopped and dried the floor. While working, Shawn's brain was working a thousand miles a second.

Shawn nearly couldn't believe what happened. In fact, Shawn had to touch his face several times just to remind himself that it really did. His cheeks were sore to the touch, and still throbbed lightly as he worked. Shawn prayed that there wouldn't be any bruising tomorrow, but, after looking in the mirror above the sink, Shawn was sure there would be. Shawn's cheeks were a dark red and he was dismayed to see that his eyes were too, but Shawn refused to cry. He would not cry.

Shawn had never been hit before, not once in his entire life. Sure, he got into the occasional fight with a peer, but no one had ever just... slapped him like that. No one he really cared about anyways. Shawn tried to justify her actions, and tried to feel as though he deserved it somehow, so that Verna wouldn't be blamed, and came to the conclusion that he did deserve it.

Shawn thought about it and figured that Verna was just having a hard time adjusting to having her family around again. They were probably stressing her out, and it's not as if Shawn did anything to really help- what with being late and all. Not to mention, Verna was probably drunk. She probably never would have done that if she was sober.

Shawn decided that he would just try to stay out of Verna's way for the next couple of days, to let her cool down. Although, she might not even remember this tomorrow, depending on how much she had to drink.

Still disturbed by the nights events Shawn took a long, hot shower, climbed into his bed, and fell into a restless sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Shawn woke up with a jolt. Panicked, Shawn sat upright and looked around his room. He was confused as to what woke him up so early. Judging from the light coming in through Shawn's grimy window, he guessed that it was only about six in the morning. He usually didn't get up for another hour. Shawn rolled over to grab his alarm clock and froze with fear as a loud _crash_ sounded from the kitchen. 'Great,' Shawn thought. The day hadn't even started yet and his parents were already fighting. That must have been what woke him up.

Shawn rubbed his eyes sleepily and tried to yawn. His face was stiff and sore and, at first, Shawn forgot why. The memories of last night flooded back into his consciousness and Shawn brought a hand up to his face. He touched his cheek and flinched at the pain that was still present.

Shawn looked at his clock. It read: 6:22am. Shawn groaned mentally. He heard a loud bang and realized with relief that one of his parents had just left the trailer. Shawn closed his eyes hoped Verna was the one who left. He really didn't want to be alone with her right now, not after last night. Shawn scoffed at himself for being afraid of his mother, Shawn Hunter isn't afraid of anything! However, the thought of him and Verna alone in this trailer made him shiver frightfully so Shawn stood up cautiously and slowly inched his door open, trying his absolute hardest not to make a sound. Shawn stepped into the hallway and timidly glanced around the corner. Chet was sitting at the kitchen table, beer in hand, and Verna was nowhere to be found. Shawn let out a loud sigh of relief and smiled. He stopped almost immediately, apparently any facial expression was going to cause serious problems for him today.

Chet's head swiveled around and spotted Shawn standing there awkwardly. Chet sighed and waved him into the kitchen.

Shawn hesitated. He knew that Chet wasn't the one who hit him, but Verna never hit him before last night either. Shawn really would have preferred to be alone. Especially since he didn't even get a chance to look at his face yet, and Shawn really wanted to make sure that there was no bruising so his friends wouldn't be able to find out what happened.

"Want some breakfast?" Chet asked, staring at Shawn's face sadly before turning away to get out some cereal and bowls.

"Uh, sure Dad. I'm just gonna use the bathroom first." Shawn replied. He stepped into the trailer's small bathroom and gasped loudly. The sound seemed to echo dramatically around him as Shawn approached the mirror. His left cheek was covered with blue, and the right had a mixture of purple and blue to it. Shawn's bottom lip had a small cut.

"Oh no." Shawn moaned, staring at his bruised face in dismay. How the hell was he supposed to hide this from his friends? 'Maybe they won't even notice.' Shawn thought to himself with false optimism. It was obvious that something happened to him. Aside from the bruises and cut, Shawn had deep purple circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. Shawn just couldn't fall asleep last night. He kept tossing and turning, trying not to think about what happened.

Shawn sighed and decided to just take his day one problem at a time. And, currently, his first problem was sitting in the kitchen, probably growing impatient as he waited for Shawn to show up.

"I thought you were never coming out of there." Chet comment with a chuckle when Shawn finally dragged himself into the kitchen. Shawn forced a quick smile and sat down. Shawn pushed his cereal around aimlessly and hunched himself over.

"Yeah, sorry I took so long." Shawn answered uncomfortably. He didn't know how to act around Chet right now. Shawn's face scrunched in confusion. Why was he feeling so awkward? It isn't awkwardness, Shawn realized with surprise, it was anger. Anger at Chet for letting Verna do that to him.

"Hows the breakfast?" Chet asked, obviously trying to start some kind of a conversation.

"You know I can't really tell. Maybe it's the pain in my face that's distracting me from the taste." Shawn snapped, standing up and pushing himself away from the table.

"Shawn-" Chet started.

"No. I don't need this." Shawn said angrily. He grabbed his backpack, changed his clothes as fast as he could, and left, slamming the door behind him.

Shawn cursed himself mentally for leaving like that. As if having to worry about upsetting Verna wasn't enough, now he had to worry about Chet. And, Shawn didn't even get a chance to try to cover the bruises or cut before he left this morning.

School wasn't going to start for another half an hour, but Shawn was happy to find that the doors were open. Shawn walked through the empty halls, struggling to come up with a plan. Shawn's best plan was to apologize as soon as he got home, but the thought of swallowing his pride like that made him cringe.

Shawn walked over to his locker and shoved his backpack inside just as an idea struck him. Topanga probably has some make up in her locker that he can borrow to cover the bruises! However, Shawn doesn't have the combination. But Cory might.

With that plan Shawn went over to the pay phone, shoved a quarter in the slot, and dialed his number. The phone rang for a few seconds until Mrs. Mathews picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Mrs. Mathews! Is Cory there?" Shawn asked.

"Of course. Cory, Shawn's on the phone!" Shawn grinned at the sound of someone tripping over something across the phone line.

"Hey Shawn. Why are you calling so early?"

"I was just... in the neighborhood and wondered if you knew what Topanga's locker combination was." Shawn said, suddenly realizing that he had no excuse for why he wanted Topanga's locker combo.

"What do you want from Topanga's locker?" Cory asked suspiciously.

"Well, I... I want her make up." Shawn said honestly, smirking slightly at Cory's trade mark 'huh?'

"Shawn, why do you want make up?" Cory asked, even more suspicious now.

"Sorry Cor, but if I tell you that then I'd have to kill you." Shawn answered seriously. He really could not let anyone find out about what happened. If they found out... Shawn didn't even want to think about the ramifications of letting someone in right now.

"Shawn, are you in trouble or something?" Cory asked, his voice now concerned for his best friend. Shawn could tell that his family were listening closely now by the way their line went dead silent.

"Of course not, man. I was just kidding with you, I left some answers to a test in there." Shawn answered quickly, hoping Cory would just be relieved that Shawn wasn't in trouble and give him the combination. Shawn couldn't believe how easily Cory guessed that Shawn was having problems. Of course, they had been friends since before either of them could remember. Shawn felt a little comforted to know that Cory was trying to look out for him, but also dismayed as he realized how difficult it was going to be to hide what happened from Cory. He would probably notice if Shawn acted even the slightest bit off.

"Oh, the combination is 20-9-4."

"Thanks!" Shawn answered quickly and hung up. Cory hadn't sounded entirely convinced so Shawn would have to try a lot harder to convince him that he was fine during school. Shawn rushed over to Topanga's locker and opened it. He dug through her books and papers, thankful that she was a perfectionist and therefore had a perfectly clean locker, before finally finding her compact.

Shawn went into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror where he stopped in horror. Since leaving the trailer and going into this bathroom the bruises had become even more prominent, and Shawn's lip was throbbing horribly.

"Crap." Shawn whispered, raising a hand to touch his cheek and recoiling from the painful touch. With a sigh, Shawn set to work and was happy to find that he and Topanga must have similar complexions.

When he was done, Shawn stared into the mirror and sighed. It didn't look great. There was a little too much make up on the left side of his face, and too little on the right. But, school was about to start, and it was the best he could do. Shawn slid the compact into his pocket, put on a false smile (after wincing at the twinge it sent through his lip) and left the bathroom.


	3. Chapter 3

Shawn sauntered into class just after the bell rang and took his seat. Shawn had wandered around the hallways for a while before class started to avoid Cory and Topanga. He had gotten a few strange looks and tried to fix the make up just before class. He thought that it looked a bit more natural now, but Shawn's a guy, what does he know about make up?

"Nice of you to join us Hunter." Their English teacher, Johnathan Turner, said as he handed back some graded papers.

"I'm thrilled to be here too." Shawn answered sarcastically, smiling widely. Turner gave him a weird look and Shawn toned the smile down a little, mentally chastising himself. 'Play it cool,' Shawn reminded himself just as Cory turn to him.

"Where were you this morning?" Cory asked curiously. Unless one of them was skipping, or sick, or in trouble they always met up in the morning before class.

"Oh, I got here late." Shawn answered with the first lie that popped into his head.

"But, you were here before I was. You called me from the payphone, remember?" Cory reminded him, his tone suspicious and his face concerned. Shawn wanted to bang his head against the nearest wall for forgetting such vital information. Panicking, Shawn tried to think of another cover up, and was thankfully saved by Turner.

"Hunter, Mathews. I'm trying to teach a class here." Turner said from the front of the room. Cory looked as though he was about to argue so Shawn grabbed his shoulders and spun him around so that Cory was facing front. Shawn heard Cory sigh in frustration and sighed in relief- he just dodged a bullet. However, Shawn still needed a cover story for how he called from school early, but got in late.

A dull throbbing began behind Shawn's eyes and he closed them tightly to block out the harsh florescence lights of the classroom. Despite his best efforts Shawn could feel himself drifting off and, unable to resist any longer, Shawn fell asleep.

Suddenly, Shawn felt a hand on his shoulder and jerked upright, shouting "DON'T!" Shawn's head swiveled around drastically as he looked for his mother, wondering what he had done to make her upset with him now.

"Shawn?" Turner asked cautiously, his hands raised in the air in the universal 'I wont hurt you' sign.

Shawn's eyes sought out Turner's and he groaned as he realized that he must have fallen asleep, and Turner was innocently trying to wake him up. Shawn looked around the rest of the room and was dismayed to realize that the entire class was watching him now with hawk-like eyes, especially Cory, Turner and Topanga.

"Shawn, are you okay?" Cory asked, staring at Shawn with some emotion that Shawn didn't recognize immediately. A few moments later, when Cory exchanged the same look with Topanga, Shawn realized that it was fear. Cory was afraid for him and obviously worried. Shawn really sucked at covering things up when it involved himself. If he had to cover for someone else, sure- no problem. But trying to cover for himself was futile. Still, Shawn was never one to give up easily.

"What?" Shawn asked to stall for time. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and stared at Turner as he slowly lowered his hands. "I, uh, I had a nightmare." Shawn mumbled, incredibly embarrassed. Some of the class laughed at this pronouncement, but it didn't look as though Cory, Turner or Topanga were buying it.

"Shawn-" Cory began, his face scrunched with concern.

"Look, it was just a stupid nightmare okay. Just leave me alone." Shawn said angrily, standing up and turning to run from the classroom. That was something that Shawn really hated about himself sometimes. Whenever things got difficult, he ran from them. Shawn didn't want to be like that- to be like his father.

Before Shawn could leave Turner stepped in front of the door, blocking his exit. "I don't think so Hunter. We need to talk about you sleeping in my class." He said, his eyes scrutinizing Shawn's face and body language. Turner could tell that there was something off about Shawn. Shawn was hunched in front of him, almost as if he were afraid of something, and he was avoiding eye contact- both behaviors were unusual of him. Turner also noticed the make up that Shawn had inexpertly applied to his face and all of these factors combined to make him very suspicious.

"Come on, man. So I fell asleep. What's the big deal?" Shawn replied angrily. He knew that Turner didn't want talk about his sleeping habits. Turner could always tell when something was wrong when they were still living together, but Shawn did not want to talk about anything with him. And, even if Shawn did want to talk, he couldn't. Shawn just got back together with his family, he finally has his mother and father together, in the same place, and he wasn't going to ruin that because of a few nominal bruises.

"It is a big deal Shawn." Turner said, his intuition screaming at him that _something is wrong._ Shawn gave him a look of death before flouncing back to his seat and roughly throwing himself into it. Shawn knew that, to the rest of the class, it probably looked like he was over reacting, but he wasn't. Turner was trying to break up his family by digging into what is bothering him and Shawn wasn't about to let that happen.

"The rest of you can go." Turner said, his eyes never leaving Shawn's face as he watched conflicting emotions run through him quicker then Turner could identify them. "Except for Mathews, you can stay."

"But, class doesn't end for another ten minuets. Where are we supposed to go?" Topanga asked in confusion. She looked around for the support of her fellow classmates, only to find that most of them had already fled the classroom.

"Go do some homework." Turner said. Topanga hesitated before grabbing her stuff, lighting brushing Cory's shoulder and leaving.

"Look, I'm sorry I fell asleep. Okay?" Shawn asked aggressively, standing up and reaching down to grab his backpack.

"Hunter, you know that's not what I wanted to talk about." Turner said, staring at Shawn in confusion and worry. "What's going on?" He asked, his voice softer. Turner and Shawn used to talk about everything before he moved out and Turner wished that he would talk to him now.

"Nothing's going on!" Shawn denied vehemently, his voice rising with fear. They couldn't find out. If they did, then they might try to take him away from his family. Verna was just adjusting to him and Chet again and she's just stressed right now. In a few days this will probably all blow over, but it won't have the chance to blow over if these two keep trying to interfere.

"Shawnie, we just want to help." Cory tried, using Shawn's nickname to try to comfort him. Shawn's lips turned up at the corners, just barely, at how much Cory and Turner obviously cared for him. But the thought of losing his family due to their meddling quickly pushed the smile off of his face.

"You want to help?" Shawn asked quietly, swinging his backpack over his shoulder. "Then mind your own business." Shawn stormed from the room.

"I'm worried about him." Cory said simply, turning to Turner for some kind of advice. Turner was watching Shawn's retreating back and sighed.

"So am I." He answered, vowing to keep a closer eye on Shawn from now on. Turner knew that something was up, but he just couldn't put the pieces together to figure out what.

"What do we do?" Cory asked him, also turning to watch as Shawn kicked a garbage can before angrily rounding the corner.

"We just be there for him. He'll talk when he's ready." Turner said wisely, turning around and walking back to his desk to prepare for his next class. The bell rang a moment later and Cory left the room quietly, immersed in his thoughts about his best friend.

Shawn spent the rest of the day avoiding Cory when he could, and ignoring him when he couldn't. Thankfully, Cory seemed to have lay off and didn't pester him about anything. Cory just let him sit in silence, and sat next to him. Shawn couldn't have been more grateful.

Shawn walked home slowly. He didn't want to go home yet, just in case his mother was there, but Shawn didn't want to spend the rest of his life avoiding going home. He had to go home sometime, and that time might as well be now.

Shawn timidly opened the trailer door and peered inside. Verna was at the kitchen table, and Shawn couldn't see Chet. Shawn felt his face tighten with fear and took a deep breath. Verna was probably remorseful over what happened, she was probably waiting for him to get back so she could apologize. Yeah, that's it.

Shawn stepped into the trailer, closed the door and dropped his backpack to the ground. Shawn took off his coat and hung it on the hook. Verna turned around and stood up.

"Shawn, we need to talk." Verna said, her face serious. Shawn nearly sighed in relief. She really did feel bad about what happened.

"Mom, it's okay." Shawn said, smiling at his mother forgivingly. He knew she would never hurt him on purpose.

"It's okay?" Verna asked. Her tone and face were strange. She didn't seem relieved that Shawn forgave her, nor did she seem happy or sad or any other emotion that Shawn would expect. She looked angry.

"Yeah. Mom, don't worry about it. I knew that you wouldn't hit me on purpose. I forgive you." Shawn said, more cautiously now. Something wasn't going right here and Shawn backtracked desperately, trying to figure out what when wrong so quickly.

"You forgive me?" Verna repeated, her voice clipped. She scoffed and Shawn felt the smile slide off of his face. Something was wrong here. "For what? I didn't do anything wrong Shawn. I'm your parent and I punished you. That's my job." Verna lectured, stalking forward predatorily. Shawn backed up and felt his back hit the door with a thud. He reached for the knob but, too late, Verna caught his wrist in a vice like grip.

"Don't..." Shawn said, his tone aggressive.

"Do not speak to me like that Shawn Hunter!" Verna said, her face ugly with rage. She tightened her grip on Shawn's wrist and dragged him forcefully across the living room and into the kitchen. Shawn had no choice but to go along with her.

"Let go!" Shawn demanded. He hissed in pain as Verna's grip on his wrist got tighter and tighter. Shawn was sure it would leave a mark.

Verna ignored Shawn and threw him into a chair. "Sit." She said, before turning and leaving the room.

Shawn's heart was pounding and his breathing turned frantic as his fight or flight instincts kicked in. Shawn was in danger- he understood that. Shawn tried to think logically. His mom was just in the next room, if he tried to make a run for it she would hear him and could quite possibly catch him.

Shawn's feet were tapping on the floor in anticipation and, finally, Shawn just went for it. Shawn stood up so quickly that the chair he was sitting in toppled over with a loud crash. Without the slightest hesitation Shawn raced around the table and sprinted towards the door.

Shawn never heard it coming. Instead, he felt a burning stripe of pain rage across his back and the sound that left his mouth was primal- a sound of defeat. Shawn tripped and fell to his knees. Desperately, he tried to scramble back to his feet, but felt another lash of pain across his back.

Shawn moaned in pain and fell forward onto his stomach on the ground. That's when Shawn started to lose track of time. All he could feel was the torturous pain. The galling pain blinded him, and Shawn knew that Verna was screaming at him- but he couldn't concentrate on the words. All he could hear was blood rushing through his ears and his heart pounding in his chest. The pain was all encompassing, and Shawn was disturbingly reminded of fire. A fire that continuously lit into him, causing moans and screams to escape from his mouth.

'This pain is never going to stop!' Shawn thought with panic. He had to do something. Slowly, Shawn tried to lever himself up with his arm enough to roll over. Maybe if she didn't have his back as a target then Verna would go away. After a few seconds of difficult effort Shawn forced himself onto his side and let out a disturbing sound between a gasp and scream as he saw a heavy belt aimed at his side.

Verna hit his side harshly and Shawn screamed out in pain. She raised to swing again but stopped and stared at him. Her chest was heaving, her eyes were frantically running over his body and she had a disturbing frown on her face. Shawn felt fear like he never had before and did something he never thought he would do.

"Please." Shawn begged quietly, just now realizing that he must have been crying for a while as tears started running down his face at an unbelievably fast pace. "Stop, please." Shawn said, louder now as the tears drenched his face.

Verna watched him for a moment longer before dropping the belt to the ground. "I don't need this." She said, her voice breathless as her chest continued heaving. "I'm going out." She continued, grabbing her jacket and opening the door. "Tell your father I'll be back for dinner." Verna called over her shoulder as she slammed the door behind her.

Shawn laid on the floor for a while and cried. The harder he cried, the worse his back hurt, but Shawn couldn't help it. He didn't do anything to provoke her, Verna just seemed to snap for no reason.

After what seemed like forever, but was probably only an hour, Shawn inched his way onto his hands and knees. Shawn used the back of his fathers armchair to pull himself into a standing position. Shawn groaned loudly as the wounds on his back seemed to reopen and he nearly stuffed his entire fist into his mouth to keep from screaming again.

Shawn slowly made his way over to the kitchen table and sat down heavily, making sure his back didn't touch the chair and wrapping an arm around his side protectively. Shawn glanced at the table and sighed. That's why Verna was so upset. His report card sat on the table, several D's glaring up at him mockingly.

Shawn became very conflicted. Did this mean that he deserved what he got? There's no way, no one deserves that. And Shawn definitely couldn't contribute all of that to stress. That wasn't just a parent punishing their kid, or someone who was too stressed out. That was abuse.

Shawn gripped the table and stood up. He hobbled his way out of the kitchen and into the bathroom.

He locked the door and turned to the mirror. His face was covered with dry tear tracks and fresh tears. His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was red. Shawn didn't bother to wash his face yet. As much as he didn't want to, he knew that he would probably be crying before he left again. Slowly, agonizingly, Shawn pulled his shirt over his head and gasped. It was a white tee- or, it _used_ to be a white tee. Now, the back half was covered in rips and panic-inducing blood.

Shawn found his breathing increasing and it turned frenzied. He stared at the shirt in disbelief and try to take a deep, steadying, breath. Instead, Shawn winced and cried out at a sharp pain he felt in his side. Shawn tried to prepare himself for what he would see, but nothing could prepare him for what he saw in the mirror.

Shawn twisted and turned in front of the mirror to see his back from every angle, and felt his eyes fill up and the tears run down his face without any conscious thought to them. His back was criss-crossed with angry red welts and deep lashes, some of which were still bleeding.

"Why would she do this to me?" Shawn asked out loud. He gasped in surprise. His voice was raw, which he had expected, but it was also high and had a pleading note to it now.

Shawn turned on the shower, waited for the water to warm up, and stepped under the warm spray. Shawn screamed in pain as the spray hit his back and Shawn sank to his knees in the shower and sobbed unrestrained. Why would Verna do this to him? Shawn didn't make excuses for her this time. She crossed a line and Shawn knew that if he was in less pain, and therefore able to move without screaming, he would already be out of here and halfway to Cory's house.

Instead, Shawn sat under the hot water, pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapped his arms around himself and tried not to move.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I just wanted to say a quick thank you to the anonymous reviewer Jessica. Normally, I try to reply to every review so, thanks for your review! Also, I had a friend read this chapter and she suggested that I give the readers some idea of how long this story will be. I'm not sure how long this story will be, but it will probably be at least ten chapters. So, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!**

**Also, I just realized that I haven't but a disclaimer up on any of my chapters. Oops. So here it goes:**

**Disclaimer: These characters do not belong to be.  
**

Shawn had a long night. He sat up most of the night, rocking back and forth in terror and anguish. Verna came home in time for dinner, just as she said she would, which was about twenty minuets after Chet came home. Neither came into Shawn's room and he was indescribably appreciative for that. Although, even if they tried to get into his room they wouldn't be able to because Shawn locked his door, which still didn't give him any sense of safety.

Shawn laid on his stomach and fell asleep around three in the morning. He slept deeply and didn't wake up until noon. Shawn groaned and tried to stretch his stiff muscles, but his entire body screamed in protest. Shawn bit his pillow to keep himself from crying out and stayed perfectly still until he was sure that he could handle the pain.

Shawn laid there for a while, but finally stood up at 1 o'clock. Shawn staggered out of his room and into the kitchen. Chet was sitting at the table, staring into a cup of coffee, and Shawn wondered if he knew what happened. Bitterly, Shawn wondered if he even cared.

"Dad?" Shawn asked quietly, standing in the doorway awkwardly. Chet stiffened and glanced up at Shawn. Chet's face was pained, but also resigned, and Shawn instantly knew that Chet wouldn't help him.

"Hey, kid. How you feelin'?" Chet asked, his voice impartial. Chet's eyes were scanning Shawn's body, and what he found only appeared to make him more sad.

"Do you know?" Shawn asked, his voice passive and soft. He didn't want Chet to turn on him too considering he was the only ally Shawn had left in this place. Although, at this point, Shawn wasn't even sure if Chet was an ally or not.

"Yeah, Verna told me." Chet answered, picking up the cup from in front of him and taking a drink from it.

"And?" Shawn continued, his voice sharp with disbelief. He wanted Chet to say that he would never let it happen again and that he was going to kick Verna out, or he was going to pack their things and get them away from here. Chet was his father and Shawn just wanted him on his side. Fathers are supposed to protect their sons. Aren't they?

"You shouldn't be stressing your mother out so much Shawn. She just got back, and you're gonna go and chase her away again. Just try harder and be a good boy, alright? And make sure you don't tell anyone about what happened." Chet mumbled, looking away from Shawn in dismay.

"What?" Shawn asked, his voice sounding as if it were a thousand miles away. Shawn's body became numb. He couldn't feel himself moving, but he knew that he grabbed his jacket and was putting it on. Shawn also knew that Chet was saying something, but ignored him. A new emotion, more powerful then anything Shawn ever felt in his life, roared to life inside of him. The emotion reminded him of anger but it was stronger, and far more powerful. Whatever he was feeling, it was lethal.

"You are not leaving!" Chet said angrily, standing up and going over to Shawn. He grabbed Shawn's wrist where Verna did the previous night, although his grip was far gentler. Shawn yelped loudly and Chet released him immediately, his eyes scanning Shawn's face wearily.

"Why not? There's nothing here for me anymore." Shawn snapped, throwing open the door and storming out.

"Shawn, you're my boy. You can't leave-" Chet tried to convince him as he followed him out of the trailer.

Shawn turned to face his father, betrayal blazing in his eyes. "I hate you." Shawn spoke clearly. He wanted Chet to hear him, to hear this if nothing else. "I hate you!" Shawn screamed in Chet's face, pleased with the look of shock and hurt that replaced Chet's earlier jaded look.

"I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!" Shawn chanted loudly as he ran from the trailer park, his heart pounding in his ears.

Shawn ran for a while, but he couldn't tell how long or to where. Shawn stopped finally and fell to the ground, panting heavily. His back was searing with pain and, despite Shawn's best efforts, salty tears worked their way down his face. Shawn was miserable. His back was burning, his face hurt and the bruises on his wrist were rubbing raw against the pavement he lay against. Shawn was also hungry. He realized with a jolt that it had been nearly an entire day since his last meal, which was yesterday at lunch.

Shawn laid on the side of some random road for a few minuets, until he could get a hold of himself, before struggling to his feet. Shawn glanced at his watch, Cory gave it to him for Christmas, and it was only 1:30. Looking at the watch reminded Shawn of Cory and suddenly, Shawn knew where he wanted to go.

Shawn started walking towards the school. He didn't know what he wanted to do. Shawn knew he didn't want to go back home to those people; if they could do this to him then they were not his family. But Shawn also didn't want to be an orphan again. He needed a family. Shawn knew that if he explained the situation the Mathews would let him stay with them again. But for how long? Three weeks again until they got sick of him? Or would it be shorter this time? Two weeks? One? A few days?

Shawn couldn't live with the thought of being not wanted, or getting kicked out, looming over his head. That left John. He knew that John would take him in again, but Shawn was hesitant to go to him. Shawn didn't want to admit that the 'family' he left John for was hurting him like this. Shawn didn't want to see the looks on John and Cory's faces when they found out but after his talk with Chet, Shawn knew that he had to help himself out of this situation- because no one else would.

Still undecided about what he wanted to do, Shawn arrived at the school. He walked by the front office and slipped into John's class, into the seat behind Cory.

"I need to talk to you." Shawn whispered into Cory ear, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. His back was killing him after all that walking.

"Shawn?" Cory turned around and gasped dramatically, drawing the attention of the entire class onto him. Shawn's eyes narrowed in confusion. He was wearing a t-shirt, these people couldn't see his back. So how did they know? "What happened to you?" Cory asked again, his eyes more moist then usual as he stared at Shawn's face and his wrist.

Shawn glanced down at his wrist and saw five finger shaped bruises on his wrist and groaned. Doing so hurt his jaw, which reminded Shawn of the bruises on his face that he forgot to cover.

"Shawn? What happened to you?" Johnathan Turner asked, looking between Cory and Shawn in confusion and not a little bit of fear.

"Can we talk in private. Please?" Shawn begged. He sighed when John and Cory exchanged glances of worry. He knew that this would happen. Shawn never talked like that; with a pleading tone. They both knew that and were obviously worried about him.

"Of course." John answered, watching Shawn cautiously. "Read the second chapter while I'm out." John turned to address the class. "Come on." He said to Cory and Shawn, leading the way out of the room.

Shawn walked in between Cory and John and felt as though he couldn't breathe. Anxiety was pumping through his veins faster then blood, causing adrenaline to course through his body and making him tremble with anticipation. All Shawn wanted to do, now that he was here, was confess everything and have someone tell him everything was going to be alright.

However, when John turned the corner and knocked on Mr. Feeny's door all Shawn wanted to do at that moment was run. For some inexplicable reason, Shawn didn't want Mr. Feeny to know. He didn't really want anyone to know. It wasn't just his pride, although that was certainly a part of it, he also felt embarrassed by the whole situation. Shawn didn't want people to know that his mother was hitting him. He didn't want people to know that he was being hurt by the one person who was supposed to love him more then anything.

"Yes Mr. Turner?" Mr. Feeny said as he opened the door. John turned to gesture to Shawn but, in a split second decision, Shawn swapped places with Cory.

"I don't want him to see me like this." Shawn whispered into Cory's ear, his voice mildly panicked, and Cory nodded.

"Do you think we can use your office? We have a bit of a problem." John said, pointing to Cory and the little bit of Shawn that was visible from where he crouched behind his best friend. Shawn felt a little stupid hiding behind Cory like this, but it was either hide behind his best friend, or have Mr. Feeny see him covered with bruises. Shawn knew that Mr. Feeny would just want to help him, but Shawn didn't want his help. He wanted Cory and John's help.

"Ah, I see. What have they done this time?" Mr. Feeny asked, eying Cory exasperation.

"Nothing. It's just that..." John trailed off, glancing behind him. He seemed to understand that Shawn didn't want Mr. Feeny to know. John leaned in closer to Mr. Feeny and whispered, "Can I fill you in later?"

"Of course." Mr. Feeny answered back, his face now a mask of concern. "I'll be in the cafeteria if you need me." He said before leaving.

"Come in, guys." John said, ushering Cory and Shawn into the comfortable office. Cory sat down immediately, but Shawn hovered in the doorway, looking incredibly small and unsure of himself. "Why don't you close the door and take a seat." John suggested, trying to keep his tone easy and laid back. He didn't want to scare Shawn off before he even had a chance to talk to them.

Shawn nodded, closed the door and sat on the edge of his seat. Shawn was gripping his left wrist with his hand to cover the bruises and he looked down at the floor, suddenly very shy.

John took a seat on Mr. Feeny's desk and sighed. Now that he had a chance to get a good look, Shawn looked like a mess. There were large, purple bags under his eyes, a large bruise on his wrist that he couldn't completely cover, and two large bruises on his face. Shawn was sitting sort of hunched over, and John wondered what the reason for that was. He guessed that whatever the reason, it wasn't good.

"Shawnie, what happened to you?" Cory asked the obvious question, staring at his best friend in shock. Cory wasn't used to seeing his friend look so defeated and it was disturbing. Shawn shook his head, indicating that he wasn't ready to answer that question yet. Shawn knew that he was the one who asked them to talk but it was as if he lost his courage to tell them. What if they didn't believe him? Maybe they were going to think he was weak or pathetic and deserved what he got. Anxiety made Shawn keep his mouth closed tightly.

"C'mon Shawn. You've got to give us something." John tried, desperately wishing that Shawn would open up to him so he could hunt down whoever did this and kill them. Shawn mutely shook his head again and John sighed in frustration. Shawn obviously wanted to talk to them, otherwise he wouldn't have come to school today, so what was holding him back?

"Are you okay?" Cory questioned, wishing that Shawn would give them something to work with. Hesitantly Shawn lifted his head. He glanced at Cory, shook his head again, and looked back down. "You're not okay?" Cory asked, his voice higher then usual due to the stress of the situation. This time, Shawn nodded his head, his eyes filling with tears.

Cory looked at John and his eyes welled with tears in panic. Cory stared hard at Shawn as though he could force him to open up and force his wounds to heal.

John slid off of the desk and walked over to Shawn. John reached out and gently grabbed Shawn by the shoulders. Shawn flinched violently and looked up at him with fearful, tear filled eyes.

"I'm not going to hurt you Shawn. I will never let anyone hurt you again." John said emphatically, staring straight into Shawn's eyes as he spoke. Shawn wanted to believe him so badly. But he just didn't know what to do. "Shawn, listen to me." John said, his hands still placed firmly, but lightly, on Shawn's shoulders. Shawn looked into John's eyes, his face unbelievably vulnerable. "You don't deserve this. I can help you, but I need you to trust me." John said, sincerity ringing in every word he spoke.

"Okay." Shawn whispered, his voice cracking slightly. He stared at John for a minuet, then looked to Cory.

"What happened?" Cory asked, his voice gentle. He reached his hand out and laid it on Shawn's arm in comfort. Shawn sighed.

"It's a long story."


	5. Chapter 5

"Every story starts somewhere." John said wisely, taking his hands off of Shawn's shoulders and motioning for Cory to do the same. John wanted to comfort Shawn, but he could tell that any kind of physical contact was out of the question right now. Shawn's shoulder's had been unbearably tense and he was trembling slightly. Shawn's face had a look of instant, though short lived, relief once Cory and John weren't touching him anymore.

Shawn sighed loudly and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He didn't know where to start, or how to. Shawn had never been very good at expressing himself verbally, which is one of the reasons why he wrote poetry. There were things that Shawn couldn't say, so he could write them instead. Shawn wished he didn't have to explain this. He wished there was some way that they could just know what happened, without any explanation necessary.

Shawn shifted uncomfortably under Cory and John's intense stares. He bit his lip as the movement caused his back to sting painfully. The sudden flare of pain gave him an idea. An idea that was probably going to end in some sort of epic disaster, as was Shawn's luck, but it was his best shot.

"I can't tell you." Shawn said, glancing at John and Corry's equally crestfallen and frustrated looks. Shawn took a deep breath and lowered his gaze to his hands. "But I can show you." Shawn whispered softly.

"What do you mean, you can show us?" John asked, watching Shawn cautiously. Honestly, John didn't know how to handle this situation. He had never run into a problem like this before, and was way out of his league. Sure, when you become a teacher you have to go through certain classes that are supposed to teach you how to deal with this issue, but there was a big difference between hearing someone lecture about... what Shawn was going through and actually seeing it. John sighed as he realized that he couldn't even force himself to think the word... abuse. It's such an ugly word and John desperately wished that that wasn't what was happening here, but he couldn't think of any other option.

Shawn stood up and slipped his jacket off of his shoulders, letting it slide to the floor.

"What are you doing?" Cory asked, fear prominent in his face and voice. Cory wanted to help his friend, he wanted to keep him safe and make sure that no one would hurt him anymore, but he didn't know how. Cory was scared, not just of what was happening to Shawn, but what he was about to see. Anticipation coursed through Cory and he sucked in a deep breath to try to control his panicked heart rate.

Shawn slowly started to remove his shirt. He gasped in pain and had to pause to catch his breath several times. John offered to help him, but Shawn shook his head. Despite how much he loved both Cory and John, he didn't want either of them touching him right now. The very thought made him tense almost to the point of immobility. Finally, with excruciating effort, Shawn managed to lift the shirt above his head.

Shawn closed his eyes for a moment to catch his breath. Shawn's heart was pounding manically and he was terrified of their reactions, almost to the point where he wished he could put his shirt back on and just keep trying to pretend that nothing was happening, but Shawn was more afraid of what would happen if he didn't tell them.

"Oh my God!" Cory shrieked, causing Shawn to jump. He glanced down and saw a large welt across his side and groaned. He had forgotten about that particular blow. "Shawnie-" Cory began, the tears that had welled up in his eyes falling softly.

"Wait." Shawn said, his voice shaking madly as his body trembled. He swallowed his fear, and turned around so they could see the damage that had been inflicted on his back.

"Shawn!" John exclaimed, horrified. The one wound on his side was bad enough, but seeing his back made John's eyes swim with a combination of tears and rage at whoever did this to him. Shawn's back was a myriad of welts. Angry red lash marks marred his skin as the welts criss crossed and overlapped each other. Some had dug so deep into his skin that they bled. Dried and crusted blood left a horrifying trail down his back, and there was a new layer of fresh blood coating his skin. Still visible underneath the blood were large, purple bruises.

"Who did this to you?" John asked, his voice catching in his throat as he struggled not to lose control of himself. As much as he wanted to break down into tears at the sight before him, John was the adult here and knew that Shawn needed him. He had to hold himself together.

"M-my mom." Shawn stuttered, turning back around and wrapping his arms around himself protectively. John was staring at him with misty eyes and a completely shocked expression, while Cory stood there dumbfounded. Cory's mind was whirling and unable to comprehend what he heard and saw in front of him. No one could hurt Shawn like that, right?

"What did you do?" Cory exclaimed stupidly. The second the words left his mouth his eyes widened and he clapped a hand over his mouth. He hadn't meant that! Cory meant to asked, 'Why would she do this to you?' But Cory was so overcome with shock that his words got muddled and confused.

John sent him a sharp, reprimanding look and wondered if it had been such a good idea to let Cory be involved in this situation. Cory was just a kid, of course it was probably too much for him to handle. But, when John invited Cory along, he thought that Shawn could use the extra support. John also had realized how intense Shawn's injuries would be.

Shawn's eyes filled with tears. Cory blamed him for this? Did Cory actually think that this was all Shawn's fault? Doubt began to creep into Shawn's consciousness. Maybe this really was his fault. He was the one who got the bad grades, and he did try to make a run for it. Maybe she wouldn't have hurt him so badly if he hadn't run. And, if Shawn hadn't gotten the bad grades then she wouldn't have had a reason to hurt him in the first place.

"What?" Shawn asked, bewildered and hurt. Shawn was seriously confused. If Cory thought it was his fault, then maybe it was. Maybe Shawn was just being a baby about this whole situation... maybe it wasn't as bad as he thought.

"Shawn... I didn't mean it that way..." Cory trailed off, his voice getting scratchy as tears slowly worked their way down his cheeks once he realized his mistake.

Shawn glared at Cory angrily for a minuet before reaching for his shirt and forcing his arms and head through the appropriate holes. Once the shirt was on Shawn grabbed his coat and put it back on.

"Shawn, what are you doing?" John asked cautiously, watching Shawn's movements wearily. He couldn't let Shawn leave, not after what Shawn told them. John refused to let Shawn get hurt again, he had to help him.

Shawn was confused and he was angry; which is always a dangerous combination. Did he really deserve what happened? Maybe he did, but even if he did Cory was his best friend and should be supportive. Shawn's doubt wavered as a paralyzing spasm of pain shot through his back and decided that there wasn't a single thing he could have done to deserve a beating like that. His mom took things way too far and Shawn wasn't going to put up with this.

"You think I deserved that?" Shawn exclaimed angrily. "I thought we were friends, Cory." Cory was shaking his head desperately, his mouth opening and closing silently. "I guess I was wrong." Shawn finished, his voice husky as he tried to hold back tears.

"Shawn, I didn't- I'm sorry-" Cory stuttered, incapable of forming a coherent thought or sentence at the moment. Cory was horrified at how quickly this went bad. Cory knew that Shawn was always worried about being unable to trust people and he didn't want to prove him right. "Shawn, stay... I didn't..." Cory trailed off at the look of death that Shawn sent him. "You are my best friend Shawn." Cory said loudly as Shawn stomped towards the door.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you can't leave." John said, racing forward and grabbing Shawn's shoulder tightly.

"Let go of me!" Shawn screamed, his face twisted in rage and fear. He knew that John was trying to say something comforting to him, but all Shawn could think about was the pain that was radiating through his body as he struggled against John desperately.

Shawn struggled so furiously that his back accidentally hit the wall next to the door he was trying to escape through. Shawn cried out in pain and John lessened his grip, staring at Shawn cautiously.

"Shawn, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" John asked, nearly releasing his hold on Shawn. He just wanted to help him!

"Please let go. Please." Shawn begged, staring up at John with tears of panic and fear streaming down his face. Completely shocked, John let go of Shawn's shoulders. Without a second of hesitation, Shawn darted out the door and ran from the school, never looking back.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: These characters do not belong to me, they belong to whoever created them.**

**A/N: Thanks to my anonymous reviewer; Marie! I hope everyone that's reading enjoys this chapter.  
**

_Stupid, stupid, stupid_. That was the mantra that was currently on reply inside of Shawn's mind. _I knew it was stupid to trust them,_ Shawn mentally scolded himself as he walked down a backroad towards the trailer park. Shawn thought that what his mother did had caused him the ultimate sense of betrayal, that was she did caused him the most pain he would ever experiance in his life, but Shawn was wrong. Cory and John's betrayal dug so much deeper. Verna had left Shawn as a hypothetical open, gaping wound and Shawn foolishly expected Cory and John to sew him but up, but instead, they added insult to injury by pouring alcohol in his wounds. How could Cory think he deserved this? And John pratically threw him into that wall. Both of which were incredibly traitorous things to do.

Shawn's world was collapsing around him so he did the one thing that he learned to do in these situations, he ran. And Shawn was going to keep running until he felt safe again. In other words, he was going to keep running until he was as far away from these people as humanly possible.

Shawn's plan was to go back to the trailer, pack a bag, steal as much money as he could find and take off for the bus station. Then he was going to buy himself a ticket to somewhere, _anywhere_ but here and once Shawn got to where he was going, he planned on getting a job. Maybe he could even get a fake I.D. eventually. Shawn wasn't stupid, he knew that he would probably end up on the streets, but he also knew that even the streets would be better then where he was right now.

Shawn turned the corner and got to the Pink Flamingo Trailer Park. Shawn took a deep, steadying breath as he walked towards his trailer with trepidation. Shawn was hoping that nobody was home, because if they were then he would have to wait for them to leave before he could get inside and then he ran the risk of John or Cory coming over to warn his parent's about what happened.

On the long walk over here Shawn had come to a conclusion about this whole situation. He needed to make things simpler for himself, so he could process the situation. Shawn decided that this whole mess was black and white. Verna was black, evil, for hitting him. Chet was evil for taking her side. Cory was evil for blaming Shawn and John was evil for making his back hit the wall. So, Shawn needed to get out of the evil area and into a good area. Shawn figured that running away and living on the streets was probably more of a gray area, then a good area, but he also supposed that the streets could be considered good compared to where he was now.

Another thing Shawn decided on his walk was that he needed to change. If Shawn was going to survive this situation then he had to become a totally different person. Cory and John's betrayal dug deep, far deeper then Verna and Chet's betrayal, and Shawn decided that he needed to become more soldier like. No more crying over people who obviously don't even care about him, and no more crying over the ever-increasing pain he was in. Shawn put himself in a type of 'war mode.' He was going to survive this, even if no one else wanted him to.

Shawn approached his trailer with caution. There was virtually no way to tell if someone was home right now, but Shawn had come up with a plan. If someone was in that trailer, regardless of it was Verna or Chet, then he needed to draw them out. If no one was inside, that was great, but he needed a way to find out. So, Shawn decided to incite a fight. If his parents were home, then someone would bang on the door to come get them to break up the fight before the cops showed up. If no one was home, then someone would bang on the door, but no one would come outside. Shawn's plan was foolproof.

Shawn edged around the side of the Connors' trailer and peeked around the corner. He smirked to himself, the people at this trailer park were so predictable. Ronnie, recently twenty one, was sitting in his lawn chair with a beer in hand, and several cans around him. He was a large man with a beer gut. He was of average height, maybe five feet eleven inches and had beach blond hair and intensely beet-red skin (probably from the last two months he spent outside, drinking himself into an early grave.) He was only sitting outside because now he was legally old enough to drink, and didn't have to duck inside every time he heard a police siren.

One trailer over was another man, Mark. He was tall- at least six feet three inches. Mark was also a very pale white and he had dark purple bags under his eyes, which were mostly hidden by his dark black hair. He was smoking a cigarette outside his trailer door. Mark smoked outside because his wife, Maratha wanted him to. And, if Mark didn't abide by Maratha's no smoking rule, then he had to sleep outside for a couple of nights. That is why Ronnie and Mark didn't get along well. Ronnie would get drunk (or be sober) and call Mark whipped, so Mark would retaliate by saying that at least he's dating someone who's not a blood relative. Things would always get pretty ugly from there.

Shawn nearly smiled at how simple his plan was and how effective it would be. It was almost as if the Universe was trying to reassure him that running away was the right thing to do.

Shawn looked around the ground for a beer can and didn't have to look very hard. There were several scattered around him. Shawn picked up the filthiest one he could find and filled it with dirt. The dirt mixed with the leftover beer that sloshed in the bottom of the can and created a disgusting mud-like substance. Shawn smiled; perfect!

Shawn glanced around the side again to make sure that he was unnoticed. Satisfied that Ronnie was to drunk to notice him, and Mark was too angry about the injustice of being forced to smoke outside, Shawn brought his arm back, aimed for Mark's head and hurled the can as hard as he could. Immediately, he ducked back around the trailer and was nearly giddy with relief at how instantaneous everything began to happen.

A loud _crack_ sounded and Shawn knew that the bottle hit it's target. Thankfully, it was just your average beer can and it wasn't glass, so it wasn't as if Mark was going to be seriously injured.

Shawn nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard Mark's loud, angry, "HEY!" It was at that moment that Shawn realized how much adrenaline was rushing through his body right now. His breathing was erratic and Shawn felt like his heart was going to burst right out of his chest, fall to the ground and start hopping around like an injured rabbit. Shawn's entire body was shaking madly and he was tapping his foot against the ground anxiously.

Shawn decided it was time for phase two. Shawn peeked around the corner again and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. Mark was sporting a bloody nose and Ronnie was getting punched in the gut ruthlessly. Shawn gasped out loud and raced around this trailer to Mark's, trying desperately not to be seen.

Shawn had originally thought that this whole scene was going to go a bit differently. Shawn figured that he would have enough time to sneak by Ronnie and Mark before they even started fighting because, usually, Mark and Ronnie liked to talk trash first. Ronnie was either too drunk, or Mark was too angry, to put up with that today, Shawn guessed.

Shawn finally made it to Mark's trailer and banged on the door before turning and sprinting in the opposite direction. He could tell the fight was really heating up now, because the sounds of flesh hitting flesh came more frequently and were even interrupted by their loud and furious yells.

Moments later, almost half the trailer park was either at the fight, or moving towards the fight. Shawn was hiding behind a large pile of trash while he waited for someone to come bang on his parents door. Shawn had to clamp a hand over his mouth tightly to stop himself from being heard because his breathing was loud and ragged. Shawn knew he needed to calm down, because the only thing he could hear right now was the sound of blood rushing in his ears and he needed to be as alert as possible.

Shawn nearly sighed out loud with relief when he saw Frank race out of his trailer and bang on Shawn's door. Verna came to the door immediately and Shawn swore his heart almost stopped. However, he needn't have worried because a moment later Frank and Verna were racing towards the fight.

Shawn let out a deep breath he had been holding, got up from his hiding spot and raced into the trailer. He bolted into his room, reached under his bed, and grabbed an old backpack. With a panicked fever, Shawn raced around the room and put everything he thought he would need into the bag- clothes, jackets, an extra pair of shoes and some of the more important baseball cards Shawn had collected over the years. Shawn figured that if things got bad, he could always pawn these for some extra money.

Shawn ripped the zipper closed and raced into Verna and Chet's room. He nearly stopped fearfully in the doorway, but the moment of fear was replaced with the terror that Verna could be home any second. Shawn rushed over to Verna's dresser and ripped open the top drawer. With fumbling hands, Shawn dug through the draw's contents until he found what he was looking for: a box that contained all of Verna's money. Shawn went through Chet's draw's as well and found a significantly less amount of money, but took what he could find none the less.

Shawn turned to where he dropped his backpack, fell to his knees beside it, and shoved the boxes inside. Once he rezipped the bag, Shawn stood up and turned towards the door.

Shawn felt as though his body had been drenched in ice water. He dropped the bag to the floor with an ominous _bang_ and gasped loudly. Verna was in the doorway, staring at him with a look that surpassed all looks she had ever given him before. It wasn't just simple anger, or even hate. Verna's mouth was clasped into a tight line and her jaw was locked in place. However, Shawn barely noticed those features because the one feature he couldn't take his eyes off of were her eyes. They were smoldering- burning, with murder.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Special thanks to my three anonymous reviewers: Lauryn, Jessica and Marie. Thanks a lot for your reviews!**

**A/N2: Sorry it took me so long to update. My teachers have decided that they all need to squeeze in one more test before Christmas vacation, so I've been a little busy. Oh well, enjoy the chapter! I get out of school Thursday and I absolutely LOATHE the holidays, because I don't have a good family, so I'll be updating just about every day. Enjoy :)**

**A/N3: Don't worry, we'll find out what Turner and Cory have been up to within the next few chapters. **

Shawn stared in horror as a slow, predatory smile spread across Verna's face. Her eyes bored into Shawn's with an almost painful intensity and Shawn chewed on his lower lip in anticipation. His heart had stopped when he first saw her, but now it kick-started with a vengence and pounded harshly in his chest.

"So," Verna said, an evil smile full of hatred spreading across her face. "What do we have here?" She asked rhetorically, walking a couple paces into the room and staring at Shawn in utter disgust.

"I -I..." Shawn stuttered desperately, backing away from Verna's slow, steady entry into the room. Verna didn't take her eyes off of him and continued to move forward until he was backed percariously against a wall. Shawn wanted to say something, anything, to stop Verna from hurting him but he knew there was nothing he could say. Aside from that, Shawn was completely frozen in fear. His back was against a wall, Verna's dresser was on his side, and Verna herself was standing in front of Shawn, not an inch away from his face. Fear like never before coursed through Shawn, choking him and causing his breathing to become more and more shallow until he started to feel light headed. Shawn nearly welcomed the feeling. Maybe Verna wouldn't hurt him if he passed out. And then, by the time he woke up again, with any luck Verna would be too drunk to remember he exists.

Verna's eyes were flickering over Shawn's face calculatingly. Shawn's face was screwed up in terror and Shawn's eyes were wide open. His eyes were nearly frozen open and he was barely blinking.

"Relax, Shawn. I'm not going to hurt you." Verna said in a sickly-sweet voice. Shawn didn't relax; in fact, just the opposite. He tensed further, his shoulders rising as his muscles twisted and his entire body trembling with the effort of holding himself perfectly still. "Yet." Verna added, a twisted smirk on her face. Tears welled up in Shawn's eyes and threated to spill over, but he focused all his energy on holding them back. Verna saw this and her smirk grew. She was enjoying the fear she envoked in her son.

Verna leaned her face closer to Shawn's and he flinched violently, then turned his head to the side in anticipation. He squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the pain that Verna was sure to inflict on him, but instead Verna whispered in his ear maliciously, "Come with me." With that, Verna grabbed Shawn's upper arm in a crushing grip and dragged him from the room. Shawn stumbled over his feet as he tried to keep up with her. When they reached the entryway to Shawn's room, Verna threw him from her with as much force as she could muster. Shawn lurched forward and tripped over his doorway, twisting his ankle in the process. He landed hard on the ground and turned his head back just in time to see Verna slam his door. A loud _click_ sounded and Shawn's heart practically stopped. Verna locked him in. He was trapped.

Shawn laid on his floor for a while, waiting for his heart to return to a normal rate, and for his breathing to get itself under control. He could barely breath. It felt as though every time he took a breath his lungs constricted further, causing him to choke and splutter. Salty tears trailed down Shawn's face as panic overtook him. He couldn't breathe; Shawn really couldn't breathe.

Shawn opened his mouth as wide as he could and tried to drag in deep, sucking breaths. After a couple of minuets Shawn could feel his heartrate going down, and his breathing started to become less erratic.

Finally, Shawn could breath again. Tears continued leaking out of his eyes as Shawn became aware of a new problem. Shawn's ankle was radiating bursts of pain up his leg and setting his nerves on fire.

"Ow, ow, ow." Shawn muttered. He dragged himself across the floor and sat up. He went to lean against the bed with his back, but yelped loudly when his back touched the bed. "Damn it!" Shawn yelled angrily, then glanced at the door fearfully. He strained his ears for a couple of minuets but when he didn't hear any footsteps approaching, Shawn relaxed minutely. Shawn reached up, grabbed a pillow off of his bed, and put it inbetween the bed and his back. He leaned back slowly, groaning a little as the movement sent shockwaves of pain through his ankle.

Shawn slowly undid his laces, pausing every now and then to catch his breath and to get a handle on the various pains running through his body. Shawn slowly took his shoe off, biting his lower lip to keep himself quiet. Shawn took off his sock as well, then rolled up the leg of his jeans. Shawn's ankle was a little swollen, and had a dull purple color coating it, but it didn't look broken or even fractured, just twisted.

Shawn grabbed his blanket off of his bed, rolled it up and gently slid it under his ankle. Once that problem was solved, Shawn looked around the room with a sense of dread. There was no window that he could escape out of, and the door was locked from the outside.

Panic bubbled inside of Shawn's chest and fear overtook him once again. Shawn closed his eyes and took several deep breaths to calm himself, feeling a little ridiculous. He had experienced more fear in the last couple of days then he had over the course of his entire life. Shawn didn't think that one person was capable of feeling so much fear. Once that was done, Shawn looked around his room again, but this time for a weapon.

Shawn didn't know what he was going to do. Verna was his mother and Shawn didn't know if he could actually force himself to hurt her. Despite everything she did, maybe she had a reason. Cory and John thought that she had a reason, Shawn reminded himself bitterly.

Shawn jumped violently as several loud knocks sounded at the trailers front door. Shawn's eyes widened and he had the immense desire to start screaming for help. Shawn sucked in a loud breath to do just that when his door was thrown open. Verna stood there, her eyes wild with rage. The air caught in Shawn's throat and he froze.

"You told someone!" Verna screamed, her body shaking with rage. Her hands curled into fists by her sides and she stared at Shawn furiously.

"N-No-" Shawn denied vehmenously. He shook his head back and forth so hard the room started spinning out of control. His heart started beating inhumanly fast and Shawn felt more traitorous tears well up behind his eyes. "Please." Shawn managed to say, startled by his own voice. It was so different then he ever thought it would be. His voice was shaky, terrified and pleading. Three things Shawn never thought he would sound like.

"You worthless little bastard. After everything that I've done for you and your father, this is how you repay me?" Verna demanded, running into the room and forcing Shawn into a standing position. He stood on one foot, the other dangling behind him. Shawn felt a sense of injustice rise in him. After everything Verna had done? What, exactly, did she think that she ever did for them?

"You never did anything for us!" Shawn shouted, surprising even himself. Verna paused for a minuet, and Shawn started rambling. "You were never there for me or Dad, and you just took off whenever you wanted to. You made Dad chase after you for an entire year and you-" Shawn's rampage was cut off as Verna punched Shawn as hard as she could in the stomach. All the air left Shawn's lungs and he tried to double over, but Verna held him up. Shawn wrapped an arm around his stomach protectively and dimly registered in the back of his consciousness that the knocking had stopped.

"You ungrateful, trailer trash!" Verna screamed, her voice rising as her levels of self-control completely fell away. Verna threw Shawn to the ground and he landed on his stomach. Shawn groaned loudly, still trying to drag in air through, what felt like, a broken stomach.

Verna glared down at him, raised her foot, and stomped on his back as hard as she could. Verna wasn't just wearing regular shoes either, but wide heels that dug mercilessly into Shawn's back. Shawn wailed desperately and tried to roll over onto his side. Verna lifted her foot again and started kicking every inch of Shawn that she could reach. The sharp, pointed toe of Verna's heel dug into Shawn's body with every kick and he screamed and whimpered with pain.

"Now, I am going have to go clean up YOUR mess." Verna shouted, her face red with rage and panting heavily. Shawn curled up as small as he could, trying to make himself a smaller target, but it didn't seem to matter. She just kept kicking and Shawn was positive that she would never stop.

After a particularly vicious blow to his back, Shawn screamed, "I'm sorry!" Shawn was crying violently, emitting loud sobbs every couple of seconds. His eyes and nose were running and Shawn was choking on a disgusting combination of tears, snot and saliva. He just wanted Verna to stop. Shawn couldn't think past the single world: stop. "Please, stop. Please!" Shawn didn't understand why Verna was doing this to him. She didn't used to be this way when he was younger, but now it was as if she was an entirely different person. Shawn wondered what exaclty happened to her on her roadtrip to cause her to become so violent and... evil.

Verna finally stopped a couple seconds later and loomed over Shawn, her chest heaving as she struggled to catch her breath. "You pathetic son of a bitch. You never appreciated me. And now you're trying to get me thrown in jail with your lies!" Verna spat, her tone venomous. Shawn's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"What lies?" Shawn asked stupidly, before he could stop himself. Verna growled and kicked his stomach, knocking the wind out of him and causing Shawn to clamp a hand over his mouth so he wouldn't throw up.

"Your father is going to hear about this." Verna informed him threateningly. Shawn nearly snorted- what was Chet going to do? Drink another beer and tell Shawn he shouldn't have pissed his mother off? "He should be home any second and when he-" Verna was interuppted by the sound of a door opening and slamming shut.

"Verna? Shawn? Anyone home?" Chet's loud and gravelly voice called out. A cruel smile instantly lit up Verna's face and Shawn was suddenly very worried.

"We're both home. We'll meet you in the living room." Verna's voice was cold and angry.

Chet's meek answer, "Okay," rang from the living room and Shawn instantly knew that he wouldn't be any help. Bitter betrayal and disapointment struck Shawn hard and he bit his lip hard to keep himself from tearing up. He shouldn't have expected Chet to help him, he's never helped him before. Still, Shawn never thought that Chet would actually just sit by and watch someone, especially his own mother, hurt him.

"Come with me." Verna demanded, grabbing Shawn by the hair and dragging him into a standing position. Shawn grunted in pain, and more tears leaked past his eyes, but Shawn wiped them away before Verna could see.

Verna dragged Shawn into the living room and threw him to the ground at Chet's feet. Chet looked down at Shawn and his eyes widened at what he saw. Shawn's face was horribly bruised, his lip was cut, and the small amouts of skin that showed from where Shawn's shirt pulled up showed some very extreme bruising.

"Verna, what the hell did you do to my boy?" Chet asked with outrage. Verna told him what she did before, true, but he didn't actually see the damage that was inflicted before now.

Faster then anyone could think possible, Verna grabbed the coffee pot next to her and threw it at Chet's head. He just barely avoided having it smash into his face. Instead, it smashed into the top of his head. Thankfully, it was just cheap plastic, and didn't cut him. But it sure hurt like a bitch.

Shawn laid on the floor and stayed perfectly still. He saw Chet get hit with the coffee pot and felt all the hope drain out of him. Shawn had started to feel hopeful that Chet would try to save him, but he knew that Chet wouldn't now. He wouldn't want to upset Verna and make her leave again because, for whatever reason, Chet loves her.

"Shawn, tell your father what you did." Verna demanded. Shawn hesitated so she kicked his leg harshly. The kick jolted his twisted ankle and Shawn yelped in pain before he could stop himself. Chet's face was twisted in miserary from watching this scene, but he made no more moves to intervene.

"I-I um, I tried to runaway. And I, uh, was going to s-steal all of your money." Shawn stuttered around clenched teeth. His teeth were clenched in an effort to keep himself from screaming at the thousands of pains that ran through his body. Shawn also started to feel exhausted. He never really knew the meaning of 'exhaustion' until this very moment. Shawn was tired of all the fighting and pain, and the emotion roller coaster he had been put on.

"What do you have to say about that Chet?" Verna demanded, staring at Shawn with a kind of satisfation on her face.

"Uh... that was wrong Shawn. Don't do it again." Chet said, his voice a weak attempt at being stern. Verna rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

Shawn tensed dramatically. He knew that that was her fighting stance. A slow sense of dread started to overcome Shawn as he realized what Verna's plan was. 'No.' Shawn thought, terrified.

"Don't you think you should punish him Chet?" Verna asked again, her voice getting rather impatient. Chet's head shot up and he stared at Verna in disgust. He glanced down at Shawn and Shawn looked back at him causing their eyes to lock. Shawn's eyes were wide and pleading. This was Chet's last chance to protect him, to save him from Verna. If Chet gave in to Verna now then it was all over, and Shawn would be as good as dead.

Chet was obviously struggling with his indecision. Verna just got back, and Chet loved her so he didn't want to risk her running away again, but was having his wife around really worth the pain she was causing his son? Normally, the answer to that question would be a resounding 'No!" However, with the constant buzz Chet had going, it was hard to think past the mist that seemed to be fogging his brain.

"Well?" Verna demanded, crossing her arms over her chest as she raised her eyebrows at Chet. Indecision was written over Chet's face as he looked back up at Verna and, in his hesitation, Shawn desperately tried to sway him to his side.

"Please." Shawn murmured, raising his head to lock eyes with Chet again. Chet's head snapped down to stare at Shawn and he continued hopefully, "Don't do this. Please don't listen to her." Shawn begged, his eyes filling with tears as he stared at his father. Shawn didn't understand why Chet didn't want to help him. How could this choice not be simple? Abusive, violent wife, or innocent (okay, not exactly innocent, but that's not the point) son? That shouldn't be a difficult decision.

"I-" Whatever Chet was about to say to Shawn was cut off as Verna drew her foot back and kicked Shawn painfully in the ribs.

"Ahhhh!" Shawn cried out and immediately dropped his head to the ground, breaking eye contact with Chet. He curled into a ball and wrapped his arms around himself, whimpering at the immense pain that seemed to be coming from one particular rib. Shawn prayed it wasn't broken.

"Do you see what he's doing Chet?" Verna asked, her voice suddenly soft and sweet as she took a new approach to persuading Chet. "He's just trying to manipulate you, honey. Shawn needs to understand that you're on my side, the parent's should always be on the same side." Verna continued. She walked up to Chet and wrapped her arms around him before gently kissing him. She pulled back several moments later, smiling happily at Chet. Chet smiled back at her, convinced and said;

"Whatever you say, honey." Verna smiled again and walked over to the refrigerator, purposefully stepping on Shawn's fingers as she went. Shawn laid perfectly still, tears of betrayal and anger burning his cheeks and dripping to the floor. Shawn could feel the adrenaline bursting through his system as the fear left him, only to be replaced by a shocking rage.

Shawn hated Chet in that moment, he hated him more then he hated Verna. Verna had made it perfectly clear that she hated him, but Chet toyed with him. Chet made him think that he actually had a chance at surviving this whole ordeal, and then Chet chose Verna. For that, Shawn vowed that he would never forgive him and, more importantly, that he would get Chet back for this. Somehow, someway, Chet and Verna would pay for this- even if it were the last thing Shawn did.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thanks to my two anonymous reviewers, Jessica and Marie. I hope you all like this chapter :) The next one will be up tomorrow or the day after.**

The anger and newly-realized hatred continued smoldering inside Shawn's chest. He was sitting on the floor, still in the living room, with his back against the wall, knees drawn up to his chest and his arms wrapped around his knees. Shawn had been sitting like this for several minuets now, while Verna slowly got Chet drunk in order to keep him compliant. Shawn was officially numb to his physical pain, and he was ignoring the pain of Chet's betrayal, and Verna's hatred. Shawn knew he only had a couple of seconds left before Verna and Chet started to 'punish' him and, honestly, Shawn was almost too angry to feel fear. But that fear was still lurking, if only in the deep recesses of his mind.

"Okay Chet, are you ready to deal with Shawn yet?" Verna asked, her tone a little impatient. Chet put down his bottle of whiskey and gave Verna a look of deep confusion.

"Who?" He asked in genuine, although drunken, confusion. Verna rolled her eyes and Shawn glared at him in disgust. It figures that Chet would forget his existence.

"Your son, remember? He tried to runaway and steal your money." Verna said, trying to jogg Chet's memory and staring at the whiskey bottle, suddenly wondering whether she gave him too much.

"Oh, right." Chet slurred. He and Verna were seated on the couch, directly across from where Shawn sat. Chet squinted at Shawn's scrunched up form and Shawn glared back defiantly. "He looks like someone already bet the hell outta him. Why do I gotta do anything?" Chet asked, his words blurring together in his drunken slur.

"Because honey, he..." Verna stared at Shawn, obviously trying to think of a lie that would spring Chet into action. The room was dead silent for several minuets. Chet went back and forth from staring at Verna, waiting for an answer and taking another swing of whiskey. Verna was staring at Shawn maliciously, her eyes roaming over his entire body as she struggled to come up with the perfect lie.

Shawn glared at Verna, never looking away and refusing to back down. No matter what, Shawn decided, they will never see him beg again. Shawn didn't care how badly Verna, or Chet, beat him, Shawn refused to give them the satisfaction of knowing how much pain he was in.

"Chet, he..." Verna's eyes sparked with an evil idea and Shawn began to feel very uneasy with the amount of confidence Verna was showing. "He hit me, Chet." Verna said, her voice a whimper and her lower lip stuck out a little. Shawn's eyes widened, he was dead. Chet's face contorted in rage as he looked from Verna's deceptive sad face to Shawn's shocked one. Chet stood up, walked over to Shawn and crouched down in front of him.

"Did you hit her?" Chet demanded, his words more clear then they had been earlier. His breath was stale and stank of alcohol. Chet's face was less then an inch away from Shawn's and Chet reeked of whiskey. The smell clogged Shawn's throat and he gagged, then turned his head to the side in an effort to avoid the stench.

Frustrated by the lack of response, Chet grabbed Shawn's face in both of his hands and forced Shawn to look at him. "Did- you- hit- her?" Chet asked again, more forcefully this time. Shawn tried not to breathe through his nose, but the stench of alcohol was still overwhelming. Shawn coughed for a minuet, but Chet refused to let go.

"No." Shawn finally answered, his hands on Chet's wrists as he tried to wriggle out of Chet's grasp. "She hit me!" Shawn exclaimed indignantly, his blood boiling. How dare Verna try to turn this whole situation on him? Shawn never touched her! Verna was the one how beat him, not the other way around!

"You're trying to blame your mother for this? What the hell is wrong with you?" Chet demanded, a look of utter disbelief and disgust on his face. Shawn struggled to see around Chet's large head, and finally managed to catch a glimpse of Verna. She had a wide smirk on her face and Shawn desired nothing more then to have that smirk wiped off of her stupid face.

"What do you want me to do, babe?" Chet asked, finally releasing Shawn's head and going back to Verna's side. He grabbed her hand gently ad planted a kiss o her temple in comfort. Shawn gratefully sucked in large gulps of fresh air and wrapped his arms tighter around himself, shivering. Shawn was afraid, but it wasn't just fear anymore. It was exhaustion and betrayal and pain and anger all wrapped up in a disturbing blend. Shawn was worn out, physically and emotionally and Shawn didn't know how much longer he could last like this.

"Hit him." Verna said, her voice disturbingly excited. Shawn glared at them defiantly, his heart pounding painfully in his chest. Chet shrugged, nodded and stood up. Shawn pushed himself even tighter against the wall and wrapped his arms tighter around his knees. Shawn was trembling frightfully and his breathing was ragged.

Chet approached Shawn and loomed over him, looking down at him with disgust and some hesitance. "Get up, Shawn." Chet finally said, motioning with his hand for Shawn to stand up. Shawn shook his head, fighting back the tears that threatened to overwhelm him. Shawn wasn't going to give in, this time he was going down kicking and screaming. "I said, get up!" Chet roared, reaching a hand down to grab Shawn's arm.

Boldly, Shawn sunk his teeth as hard as he could into Chet's arm. Shawn twisted his face from side to side, ripping Chet's flesh to the best of his abilities. Chet yelled with pain and hit Shawn as hard as he could on the top of the head with his other hand. Shawn yelped and released Chet's arm. Shawn had black spots encroaching on his vision from the blow, but tried his hardest to shake it off. He stared at Chet's arm and was satisfied to see that it was bleeding.

"You little bastard." Chet growled, all hesitance gone. Shawn raised his eyebrows in challenge. Shawn knew that he couldn't take Chet, or Verna, and especially not the two of them together, but Shawn wasn't going down without a fight.

Verna was still watching from the couch, scowling and looking around the room. "Chet." Verna called, apparently finding whatever she was looking for. Chet turned his head and Verna walked over to Chet, then handed him a large, leather belt. Chet nodded his head at Verna and took the belt from her hands. Shawn tried to swallow his fear, but his mouth was so dry it was like trying to swallow dirt.

"Stand up, Shawn." Chet demanded, standing in front of Shawn with anger. Shawn chastised himself; why didn't he bring a weapon with him when he came back to get his stuff?

"No." Shawn answered fiercely, his voice wavering with fear, but Shawn merely tried to curl up tighter.

"That's it! When I tell you to get up, it means get up." Chet boomed. Faster then Shawn knew was possible, Chet raised the belt and swung it at Shawn's face.

"Ah!" Shawn screamed in surprise and fear. He just barely had time to raise up his arms to take the blow. A huge welt formed across the length of both of his forearms, and Shawn was incredibly thankful that Chet didn't get his face. His arms burned madly and stung painfully. Imagine the needle sensation you get when a limb falls asleep, and then multiply it by fifty.

"Up." Chet said simply, drawing his arm back to deliver another blow if Shawn didn't comply. Shawn buried his head under his arms and stayed perfectly still. Chet hit him again, this time in the legs, and Shawn was able to keep himself from screaming this time, although barely. "If I have to tell you to get up one more time..." Chet trailed off, leaving Shawn to interpret the threat as he wanted to.

Shawn felt tears drip off of his eyelashes and sighed. He wiped them away and stood up as quickly as he can. Shawn's ankle was killing him from the position it had been in, so he tried not to put any weight on it what-so-ever.

The second that Shawn was fully upright, Chet lashed the belt across Shawn's face vindictively. "Ah!" Shawn cried out and fell back against the wall. Chet had a hand on Shawn's chest to hold him upright and both of Shawn's hands were over his face. Shawn's cheeks and mouth burned painfully and his lower lip was bleeding profusely. Salty tears were streaming from Shawn's eyes and irritating his wounds further, causing Shawn to shudder with suppressed sobs.

" 's what you get for not listening to me." Chet said, his words slurred. He turned around and took a large gulp from his whiskey bottle.

Shawn tried to get a hold of himself, but it was useless. Shawn could barely keep himself from outright sobbing with the pain his face, and the rest of his body, was in, and the terror of what was going to happen next.

"Hands down." Chet's voice broke through the cloud of tears that surrounded Shawn and he slowly lowered his hands from his face, keeping them up around his neck.

Chet raised to belt to swing it again and Shawn cringed against the wall. Shawn squeezed his eyes shut tightly and sucked in a deep breath, more tears streaming down his face.

Shawn's eyes burst open and he nearly fell over with surprise when the trailer door burst open. "Put your hands in the air. You two are under arrest."

Shawn couldn't take in what he was seeing. Three police officer's ran into the trailer. Chet tried to fight, but two of the officer's disarmed him, and tackled him to the ground. They cuffed him, and Verna was already cuffed and being lead out of the trailer.

John and Cory ran through the open door and Shawn fell to the ground in relief.

"Oh my God! Shawn!" Cory called, tears already working their way down his face as he got a good look at Shawn. John rushed over, took Shawn's chin gently in his hand and stared at Shawn's face with horror.

"You came." Shawn croaked, his throat clogged with tears. "I can't believe you came."

"Of course we came Shawn. We love you." John answered him, releasing his chin and putting a soothing hand on his shoulder. A paramedic was standing behind John and was obviously trying to get to Shawn, but all three ignored him.

"I love you guys." Shawn said, and then he let go of all his inhibitions, lunged forward and wrapped his arms around John. He smothered his face into John's shoulder and closed his eyes tightly, although that didn't stop the ceaseless tears. John hugged him back tightly and ran a hand through his hair soothingly.

"It's okay Shawn. Everything going to be okay." John whispered, resting his cheek on the top of Shawn's head in comfort and hugging him as tightly as he dared, he didn't want to hurt him.

Shawn cried so hard that he thought his lungs would fall out of his body. Shawn was sobbing desperately, choking in deep, spluttering breaths whenever he could. John and Cory love him! Shawn felt safe in that moment and he ignored how much physical pain he was in.

"I'm sorry, Shawn. I'm really sorry." Shawn could hear Cory saying from somewhere to the right. Shawn released John from one of his arms and wrapped it around Cory instead. John did the same and suddenly, Cory was there. He was hugging Shawn as tightly as he possibly could, and crying right along with him. And, although Shawn couldn't be sure, he was pretty sure that John was crying too.

They stayed like that for what felt like forever, but in reality was probably only a couple of minuets. Finally, the paramedic tapped John on the shoulder and said sympathetically, "I'm sorry, but we really need to get Shawn to the hospital."

"Right. Of course." John said, his voice hoarse and rough. John went to stand up, but Shawn clutched him and Cory tighter to him, a new fear overtaking him.

"Don't leave me! Please, don't leave me!" Shawn begged, his tears coming even faster now.

"I'm not going to leave you Shawn. We just need to get you to the hospital, to make sure you're okay." John said soothingly, trying to comfort Shawn as much as possible, but at a loss for words. "I'll be right there with you, every step of the way. I'll never leave you again, I promise." John said fiercely.

Still, Shawn refused to let go. He didn't know if he could believe John in this situation and Shawn couldn't handle it if John or Cory left. The paramedic whispered something in John's ear and he looked angry for a second, but resigned the next. John nodded his asset and the paramedic went away.

Shawn sighed in relief, believing the danger was over. However, moments later he felt something sharp enter the skin on his arm. Blackness coated his vision and Shawn drifted off to a superficial sleep. The last thing he heard was John's soothing whispers as someone carried him away.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Sorry for this delay on this chapter, I thought that I would have it up yesterday but I got sidetracked -_-' Anyways, please enjoy this chapter :)**

**A/N2: Thanks to my two anonymous reviewers- Zippy and anonimo.**

Shawn was floating serenely in a pool of blackness. You would think, since everything was dark, Shawn would be frightened. But, instead, the darkness comforted him. It was like he was in a warm pool of water, but the water would never make his skin shrivel up, so he would always be comfortable there.

Slowly, Shawn became aware of a dull, throbbing, sensation coming from his head. The next thing Shawn became aware of was the sound of a steady beeping. Shawn slowly realized that he was lying down, on something soft and stiff. As soon as the word 'bed' entered Shawn's thoughts, a rush of memories came flooding back. Suddenly, Shawn was aware of every pain in his body that was pulsing in tune with his heart. Shawn gasped, and opened his eyes. He struggled to clear the fogginess from his vision and, when he finally did, Shawn's head swerved from the left to the right side of his bed.

"John! Cory! You're still here." Shawn said, totally delighted. John chuckled and Cory gave him a strained smile.

"The nurses said you could be a little out of it." Cory informed Shawn solemnly, his glance flickering away from Shawn uncomfortably. Cory didn't like hospitals, not one bit. They were creepy, and bad things happened in hospitals. Earlier, when Cory confessed his fear of hospitals to John, he tried to remind Cory that good things happen in hospitals too, but it didn't help to ease his anxiety.

"I'm out of it? Out of what?" Shawn asked in confusion, a content smile on his face. John and Cory were each sitting by Shawn's side, albeit different sides and they were both holding one of his hands. That was all Shawn needed, in that moment, to be content.

"It's all those pain meds." John said, his voice becoming strained and frown lines formed on his face as he looked at Shawn's face, then looked away.

"Pain meds?" Shawn questioned, completely unconcerned. "Is that why I'm so tired?" Shawn asked, trying to suppress a yawn and failing miserably.

"Yes." John said. He hesitated, then, "Shawn, you've been asleep for 32 hours." John continued, watching Shawn's face for any signs of distress. However, Shawn seemed wholly unconcerned by this had been a terrifying 32 hours. The doctors told them that due to all the emotional and physical trauma, it was possible that Shawn might not wake up for days. John and Cory were both thankful that that wasn't the case. Still, it had been an emotional 32 hours.

John had been trying to be there for Shawn and for Cory, but it was difficult because John felt very angry and guilty about the entire situation. John couldn't help thinking that if only he adopted Shawn when he had the chance, or if only he realized what was happening right away, if only he had gotten to the police sooner, if only he hadn't let Cory into the room with them when he first tried to talk to Shawn, then maybe none of this would have happened. Maybe Shawn wouldn't have been lying, unconscious, in a hospital bed because his parents beat the hell out of him.

John knew he shouldn't blame himself, but it killed him to see Shawn like that. It also killed John to think that someone could do that to Shawn, to _his_ Shawn. Every time he thought about what those pieces of trash did to Shawn John had to remind himself to take a deep breath and calm down.

Not to mention, John was also trying to help Cory with his guilt and his rage. Cory had gone between shouting and crying so often that it was all John could do to try to hold him together. John also had to deal with all the doctors, sign all the forms and talk to all the people who came by to visit Shawn, but weren't allowed into his room because he was in the ICU and they only let in immediate family. Of course, they made an exception for John and Cory, but that was the only exception they were willing to make.

John shook himself out of his thoughts to see Shawn shifting uncomfortably in the bed and frowning.

"What's wrong Shawn?" Cory asked, glancing around the room, hoping he could find the source of Shawn's discomfort.

"What's on my arms?" Shawn asked, moving his arms around and gripping John and Cory's hands tighter. He looked down to see that both of his arms were covered with white gauze from the wrist to the elbow. Shawn shifted some more and his frown deepened. He released Cory and John's hands to pull down the sheet that was covering him to his waist. He pulled up his hospital gown and groaned. His chest and back were completely wrapped in what could only be an ace bandage or gauze.

"What-?" Shawn began to ask. He interrupted his question as he realized his lower lip felt unnaturally stiff. Shawn reached up and felt his bottom lip gently. There was something strange in his lip.

Seeing the confusion on Shawn's face, John explained, "Your lip needed stitches."

"And your ankle is bandaged too." Cory added, hoping to prevent Shawn from moving his ankle and causing nay unnecessary pain.

"What about my face?" Shawn asked. He reached up to figure out why his face felt so stiff and sore, but John caught his wrist gently in his hand and lowered it back down.

"Do you remember what happened Shawn?" John asked uncomfortably. He didn't want to show how angry and upset he was about what happened because he didn't want to scare Shawn.

"I think so." Shawn said, wincing as several quick flashbacks from that night came back. The memories were a little foggy, but whether that was because of the medication or from Shawn's brain suppressing them, he didn't know.

"What happened?" Shawn repeated, squinted his eyes in an effort to break through the haze around his mind. John and Cory exchanged a worried glance.

"Shawn, we have a lot to talk about and you need your rest. Maybe we should talk about this later." John suggested. He wasn't just worried about Shawn's physical heath though. Shawn just woke up and discovered all these injuries and John didn't want to overwhelm him.

"Yeah, don't worry about it right now Shawnie." Corry said, using Shawn's nickname in an effort to comfort him. Shawn reached out and locked his hands with John and Cory's again.

"I need to know." Shawn said forcefully. John hesitated and Shawn could tell that he was about to refuse. "Please." Shawn added, pouting for effect. John sighed and gave in, just as Shawn knew he would.

"Your face-" John began, but was quickly interrupted.

"No." Shawn said, suppressing another yawn. "I want to know everything, from when I left school to when I woke up."

"That's a really long story Shawn." Cory told him wearily. "Are you sure you're not too tired?" He asked in concern.

"I'm sure." Shawn answered, locking eyes with Cory to prove his point. Cory was surprised at the strength of Shawn's gaze and looked at John, shrugging.

"Alright, well..."

_2-ish Day's Ago..._

Shawn bolted from the room as fast as he could and left John and Cory standing there, dumbfounded. They stood that way for several seconds, until John exploded.

"Matthews!" John shouted with anger and frustration, turning away from the door and walking back over to Cory. John laid his hands on his hips and glared at the fifteen year old. "What the hell were you thinking?" John demanded, his chest constricted with worry for Shawn.

"I didn't mean to say that." Cory shouted quickly, his tone defensive. Cory ran his hands through his hair and gripped the curls in frustration. "I was just... I don't know! Shocked, I guess. I mean, why would anyone want to hurt Shawn?" Cory asked rhetorically, scoffing in disbelief. Cory's voice started off as defensive and on edge, but he ended by sounded very scared and confused.

John let out a deep breath as the impact of this situation hit him. Verna was beating Shawn, and Cory just witnessed the scars. John forgot for a moment that Cory was still a kid, and dealing with something so life altering and dangerous was probably a lot to handle for a kid. John's a full grown adult, and it was a lot for him to handle! John walked over to Cory and laid a hand on his shoulder in comfort.

"It's going to be okay, Cory. We'll get him back." John assured him.

"He looked so scared... But Shawn's never afraid of anything..." Cory trailed off as his voice faded into a whisper and then silence. Cory had tears in his eyes, but he wiped them away with his wrist. "We've got to help him." Cory said fiercely. Cory silently vowed to himself that he would never let anyone hurt Shawn ever again. They would have to go through him first. And, judging by the intense look on John's face, they'd have to get through him too.

"We will. But first, we've got to find him." John said seriously, glancing around the room as though he was looking for clues. John took his hand off Cory's shoulder and walked over to the door. "Stay here. I'll be right back." John said, glancing back at Cory to make sure he would do as he was told. Cory nodded his asset and John left.

Cory stared around the empty room and tried to calm his pounding heart. Cory tried to take some deep, soothing breaths but it was to no avail. Cory Matthews was terrified. No, that word didn't seem strong enough. Petrified, maybe? Whatever word used, Cory was nearly paralytic with fear and worry for his best friend.

Cory thought back to the marks on Shawn's back and shuddered. He instinctively reached back to feel his own back, and thankfully found himself uninjured. However, it didn't do anything to lessen the knot in his stomach or the way his lungs were constricting.

Cory tried not to, but he couldn't help thinking about what could be happening to Shawn at this very minuet. Cory couldn't see past the anguished and pained look on his face, or the way Shawn struggled just to get his shirt off. Shawn's yelp when John accidentally pushed him into the wall rang in Cory's ears. He tried to place his hands over his ears, but it seemed as though nothing could stop the yelling.

This entire situation was senseless. It was stupid and senseless and unfair. Shawn didn't deserve what was happening to him, no one did. Cory wished that he chad been able to see what was happening sooner so maybe he could've prevented this entire mess from ever happening.

Guilt plagued Cory's consciousness and he tried to stifle his tears, but it was useless. Shawn was hurt because of him. It was completely Cory's fault and, worse, he made Shawn think that it was his fault. Now, Shawn was God-knows-where, doing God-knows-what and probably in a lot of pain. Losing his inhibitions, Cory sat down and let the tears flow freely down his face.

* * *

John walked briskly down the hall to his classroom. John was a fully grown man, and it therefore infringed upon his pride to ask for help most of the time, but this was the first time John wasn't ashamed to admit that he needed help and ask for it. John opened the classroom door and the obviously bored class turned to him, wondering what was going on with Cory and Shawn. It's true that some of the students were actually worried, especially Topanga, but others could care less and were merely interested in the drama. The very thought grated on John's last good nerve so he ignored the class and walked over to Mr. Feeny.

"Mr. Turner." Feeny greeted cautiously, sensing that something was wrong.

"Listen, George..." John trailed off when he realized that the entire class was eavesdropping. He leaned forward and whispered, "I need your help." John leaned away again and raised his eyebrows as if to ask, 'Will you help me?' Mr. Feeny nodded.

"Mr. Turner and I have an emergency meeting to go to. Kindly, pull out some quiet work to do while I find a substitute." Feeny said. He hadn't even finished speaking and the room was already buzzing with conversations, rumors and speculations. "Lead the way." Feeny said to John. John needed no more encouragement then that and led the way out of the classroom, trying to look calm and collected.

"Mr. Turner! Mr. Feeny!" Topanga called, hurrying into the hall after them. John sighed in frustration and he and Feeny turned towards Topanga.

"I'm sorry Topanga, but I really don't have time..." John began hurriedly. They needed to move if they were going to find Shawn before he was hurt again, or he ran so far that they couldn't ever find him.

"This is about Cory and Shawn, isn't it?" Topanga asked, her eyes wide with worry. John looked helplessly at Feeny, who then took over.

"Ms. Lawrence, I suggest you go back to class and..." Feeny began sympathetically. He understood why she would be so worried, but Feeny didn't think that it would be appropriate to avoid such a young girl in such a bad situation.

"No. Mr. Feeny, Mr. Turner, Cory is my boyfriend and Shawn is his best friend. Shawn is also my friend. I want to help them there if there is something wrong." Topanga said, her voice unwavering and serious.

"Topanga, this isn't a situation you should be involved in." John said, determined not to make the same mistake twice. Cory screwed up with Shawn because he's young and this was too much for him to handle. John didn't want to make the same mistake with Topanga. He wasn't just trying to protect Shawn; he was trying to protect her too.

"I'm going with you. I understand that means I'm being insubordinate so I'll accept a suspension if that's what it takes." Topanga said to Feeny, her voice continuing to be unwavering and determined. Feeny and John were both touched by the loyalty Topanga showed her friends, even at the risk of screwing up her spotless discipline record.

"Very well. Come along." Feeny gave in and turned to John, motioning for him to start walking again. John hesitated for only a moment before sighed, turning and walking away with Feeny and Topanga following.

They reached the office and opened to door to find Cory sitting in a chair with his head in his hands and his shoulders quaking. Topanga rushed over to him and wrapped her arms around him protectively. Cory took his hands away from his face and hugged her back gratefully.

"Where is Shawn?" Feeny asked in confusion and deep concern, feeling a dangerous sense of foreboding.

"He took off. We've got to find him George." John said, his voice a little agitated. John wanted to be on the road already so they could find Shawn. Every second felt like another huge obstacle in between them and Shawn.

"What happened?" Feeny asked, moving behind his desk. Feeny opened a drawer, pulled out a box of tissues and handed them to Topanga, who took a few and handed them to Cory.

"Well..." John hesitated now, glancing at Topanga with worry. Not only was John unsure of whether or not she could handle the rather gory details, but John also wasn't sure if Shawn would consider it an invasion of privacy to tell her.

Apparently, Cory was thinking along the same lines because he said, "Don't worry. Shawn wont mind if we tell Topanga." With that matter settled, John launched into the disturbing recount and winced at Topanga's gasp when he described Shawn's torn-up back. When John explained what Cory said, Cory hung his head in shame. Topanga rubbed his hair in comfort. John rushed over the part where he made Shawn's back it the wall, and tried to ignore Feeny's disapproving look afterward. When he was done, the room was silent for a full minuet before anyone spoke.

"Where do you suppose he went?" Feeny asked the room at large, at a loss himself.

"He wouldn't go back to the trailer." Topanga answered immediately. She was very upset about what happened, but she was also very angry. Shawn was a great guy, so why did that happen to him? Cory and Topanga held each other tighter.

"He probably tried to run away. That's what he usually does when thing go wrong." Cory supplied, rubbing Topanga's arm and feeling the slightest relief now that she was there. How could things not work out with Topanga around?

"Alright, so we check the train station and the bus station." John said in a rush. He wanted to get _moving_ already, and John wasn't a very patient person on the best of days. "George, you're coming with us?"

"Of course." Feeny answered. "I need to make a quick phone call first." Feeny held up a hand to stop whatever John was about to say, then picked up his phone and dialed. Feeny called the vice principal and asked her if she could cover for him. Feeny didn't explain the entire situation, but did inform her that it was an emergency. She agreed and Feeny hung up.

"Alright, Topanga, I assume you're going with us as well?" John asked, already knowing the answer, but wanting to be sure.

"Yes." She answered simply.

"Okay, we'll be able to find Shawn faster if we split up. George, take Topanga and check out the bus station. Cory, you and I will go to the train station." John said, looking around the room for agreement. Everyone nodded. "Let's go." He said, and they left the office.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry that it took me so long to update this chapter! I really hadn't been in the writing mood, but I'm very pleased that I finished it. The next chapter should be up in a day or too and it will be quite a bit more crazy then this one, so I hope you enjoy both.**

**A/N2: I used the words 'Past' and 'Present' because I thought the flash backs might make things a little confusing without them, so I hope no one gets confused.**

**A/N3: Thanks to my anonymous reviewers: Diana and Jessica. I hope this chapter was worth the wait.  
**

_Present_

"You're right." Shawn interrupted John's recount of events. He could feel a steady throbbing coming from his head and just about every other part of his body, so Shawn figured that the pain medicine was wearing off. He wasn't going to ask for more just yet, because he wanted to be fully aware so he could understand what else happened. "I did try to runaway."

"Yeah, I figured that's what you were going to do." Cory said, smiling slightly at his best friend. Cory was relieved that Shawn seemed to have forgiven him for what he said about Shawn deserving what was happening at home. Cory was also intensely relieved that Shawn seemed to be a lot more lucid now then he was a little while ago.

"So, what'd you guys do next?" Shawn asked, shifting in his bed to get more comfortable even though, considering his extensive injuries, that was nearly impossible.

* * *

_Past_

John and Cory had been on the road now for about fifteen minuets. They were heading towards the towns only train station and were only about five minuets away.

The silence in the car was deafening. Neither had said a word since they got into the car, and both were wallowing in their own feelings.

Cory was feeling guilty. He didn't think that he ever really knew what it meant to feel guilt, until this very moment. Shawn was his best friend, and he came to Cory and John for help with a serious situation, and then he was basically rejected. Cory shuddered at the word; rejected. It was such an ugly word, especially in relation to Shawn. Cory knew how many times Shawn had been let down by his family and friends in the past and Cory never thought, not in a million years, that he would become one of the many to hurt Shawn. Cory promised Shawn a long time ago that they would always be best friends, and they'd stick by each other no matter what. They had always been so close, it was as if they were brothers rather then best friends. Cory didn't mean what he said to Shawn, and he just wished that he would get a chance to explain that to Shawn. Cory desperately wished that they would find Shawn, unharmed, and soon.

John's thoughts were running along a similar track. He was feeling immensely guilty as well. John was the adult of this situation, he should have known what was going on when he first noticed Shawn acting strangely. John should have pulled him aside and talked to him, but instead, he let Shawn go home to get beaten. John also should have realized that this situation would be way too much for Cory to handle. John knew that Cory didn't mean what he said. He was just a scared kid, who saw his normally fearless best friend terrified, and freaked out. It would happen to anyone his age.

John's emotions were a little more complex then Cory's though, because John didn't just feel guilty, he also felt angry. This slow burning anger that began barely noticeable, but was now making his breathing increase and his grip tighten on the steering wheel. John was angry at Verna for doing that to Shawn, and enraged at Chet. Sure, Shawn didn't saw that Chet did anything but that either meant that Chet ran out on them or he knew what was happening, and let Verna do it.

"Mr. Turner?" Cory's timid voice whispered. He was wringing his hands in his lap anxiously and staring out the window. It was late morning, maybe early afternoon so the sun was shinning beautifully. Cory tried to take the beautiful scene in, he tried to gain some comfort from it, but he couldn't. It felt as though the warm sun he was basking in was mocking Shawn's situation, and mocking Cory for hurting his friend.

"Yeah?" John replied, his voice clipped.

"I hope he's okay." Cory said simply. John nodded his head and silence retook the car for the next several minuets until they reached the train station.

* * *

_Past_

"Ms. Lawrence, do you have any idea which bus Mr. Hunter would have gotten on?" Mr. Feeny asked Topanga as he stared around the bus station with confusion. There were several buses, maybe ten or more, and Feeny was completely lost. He liked to think that he knew Shawn pretty well, but not well enough to guess what bus he would take.

"Probably whichever is cheapest." Topanga answered, staring around the crowd critically. Topanga walked forward a couple more paces and Feeny hurried along behind her. Topanga climbed on top of an empty bench and started looking around from her vantage point.

"Anything?" Feeny asked, his eyes also sweeping the bus station like a hawk. He was disappointed that he didn't see Shawn, but was hoping that Topanga would be able to see him over the crowd.

"No. Maybe he's already on a bus?" Topanga suggested, though she had a feeling that that wasn't the case. She couldn't explain if asked, but Topanga intuitively knew that Shawn wasn't at this bus station.

"Maybe we could ask some of the drivers if they've seen him?" Feeny suggested. Topanga shrugged. She could feel disappointment and worry bubbling up inside of her. She tried to squelch it down, and tried to stay hopeful that they would find him, but with every second that passed the chances of finding Shawn got slimmer and slimmer.

Topanga climbed down off of the bench and sat down on it instead. She sighed and tried to get a handle on her emotions. "I'm scared for him." Topanga admitted, her voice with the slightest waver.

"I am too." Feeny confided, sitting down beside her. "But, we musn't give up hope. Shawn is a smart kid and quite resourceful. I'm sure he's just fine. It's just a matter of finding him."

"I'll start from the front, and you can start from the back. Maybe one of the drivers did see Shawn." Topanga suggested. Feeny nodded and the two of them got up and started asking the drivers. They met up in the middle and were disappointed to admit that none of the drivers saw him.

A moment later, Topanga nearly jumped with excitement with Feeny's cell phone rang.

"Hello?" Feeny answered, praying that it was good news or that, at the very least, John and Cory found Shawn. "Oh. No, we didn't find him either." Feeny said, his tone heavy with sadness. Topanga turned her head away from Feeny and felt tears well up in her eyes. They had to find Shawn. They just had too.

"Of course." Feeny was saying into the phone. "Yes. Okay, meet us there after." He hung up.

"They didn't find him?" Topanga asked rhetorically.

"No, I'm afraid they didn't. Mr. Turner and Cory are going to go to the police. They think that we should go inform the Matthews of this situation, just in case." Feeny muttered wearily. Shawn was a good kid, and it irked Feeny beyond belief when these sorts of situations happened. Unfortunately, more often then not they seemed to happen to Shawn.

"What are they going to do?" Topanga asked. She was hoping that they were going to meet up soon. She really wanted to be with Cory right now, and she had a feeling that Cory needed her too.

"They are going to stop by Shawn's trailer first, to see if Shawn might have stopped there to pick up a few things. Then they're going to the police." Feeny said sadly. This was a terrible situation for anyone to be placed in, and Shawn had already had a difficult enough life.

"Okay." Topanga said, and led the way to the car. As long as she had something to do, and she felt like she was helping, then maybe the worry and fear that was gnawing at her wouldn't be able to completely paralyze her.

* * *

_Present_

"You told the Matthews?" Shawn exclaimed, mildly panicked. He had kind of expected Topanga and Feeny to get involved, and he knew that he should have known the Matthews would have gotten involved too, but Shawn hadn't thought about it. Shawn was completely mortified. It's not like he doesn't think of the Matthews as family, because he does, but that doesn't mean that Shawn wanted them to know everything about what was going on. It was too embarrassing because here's the family that he fought to be with for so long, and instead of being nice, loving parents, they're abusive, ugly drunks.

"Shawnie, you know my mom and dad think of you as their son." Cory said, a little surprised that Shawn was so upset. He really didn't think that Shawn would mind if his parent's knew about evertything.

"I know, it's just..." Shawn trailed off, his cheeks blushing. "It's just embarrassing." He finally muttered. Cory and John exchanged a look.

"Shawn, you have nothing to be embarrassed about." John said. John leaned forward a little and gently grabbed Shawn's hand again. "You did nothing wrong." John said emphatically and Shawn blushed again. He didn't completely believe that. After all, every time anything went wrong in Shawn's family, he was always to blame for it. They wouldn't blame him every single time if it wasn't at least partially Shawn's fault, right?

"Sure." Shawn answered neutrally, his eyes averted from John and Cory's faces. John sighed and decided that this was not the hill to die on tonight.

"Where's Topanga and Mr. Feeny?" Shawn asked, equally embarrassed that they knew about his situation.

"They wouldn't let more then two people in at a time and, well... we kind of refused to leave." Cory said, smiling. The nurses had tried several times to get John and Cory to leave the room, even just to get something to eat, but they refused to leave for more then five minuets, and even that was stretching it.

"Really?" Shawn asked, touched and a little embarrassed. It was nice to know that they cared so much, and Shawn basked in that feeling. John and Cory nodded and Shawn smiled slightly.

"So, can you fast forward a little bit. I know what happened when the police came in, obviously, but how did your parents take the news?" Shawn asked, he was really starting to feel a lot of pain and Shawn was three seconds away from asking for some more pain meds.

"Mom cried and Dad punched a hole in our living room wall. Eric was pretty upset too." Cory recited, cringing at the thought of the devastated look on his mom's face, angry on his fathers and the confused and hurt look that Eric had worn since they found out.

"What about Morgan?" Shawn asked, concerned. He didn't think that she should know about what happened, she was pretty young.

"She doesn't know yet." Cory answered, already anticipating Shawn's worry.

"That's good." Shawn answered, relieved.

"Shawn, there's something that we should probably tell you." John said haltingly. He didn't want to upset Shawn, especially since he could see some creases forming on Shawn's forehead, which probably meant that he was in pain.

"What?" Shawn asked, his heart rate instantly picking up. Shawn watched John and Cory exchange a look. Cory sighed and John cleared his throat.

"A social worker from DCF is going to come by tomorrow. She has a lot that she needs to talk to you about." John said, his voice inexplicably annoyed. John didn't like this particular social worker too much. She had come by while Shawn was still unconscious, and for some reason she didn't seem to empathetic for Shawn. In fact, it was pretty much the opposite; she seemed very apathetic. Maybe it was just because of her job, maybe it made her immune to seeing kids in as bad shape as Shawn. Whatever the reason, John didn't like her. He didn't want anyone within a foot of Shawn right now, because what Shawn really needed was rest; not to be interrogated by social services.

"Oh no." Shawn groaned. Why hadn't he thought of this before? Of course, she probably was going to expect him to tell her everything about what happened and Shawn wasn't ready to talk about it. He wasn't even ready to think about it. Of course, now that John brought it up, Shawn couldn't stop thinking about it. Where was he going to go now? A foster home? Shawn shuddered. Maybe he could live with John again and this time John could adopt him. That would work.

Suddenly, a new thought struck Shawn. What's going to happen to his parents? Shawn was hoping that they would go to jail, but what if the social worker wants Shawn to testify against them in court or something? Shawn didn't think he could do that. He knew he couldn't.

"Shawn? Shawn, you need to calm down." Shawn was dimly aware of John trying to speak to him, but Shawn's heart was beating erratically in his chest and Shawn was desperately trying to gasp for breath, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't seem to draw air into his lungs. Tears of panic welled up in Shawn's eyes and he just barely registered a sharp pain in his arm. His heart started returning to normal and Shawn could feel himself peacefully drifting off. He sighed, gave up control and allowed himself to fall asleep.

* * *

**A/N4: DCF stands for Department of Children and Families.**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Okay, so it's taken be 20 days to upload this chapter. I would just like to take this opportunity to say: I AM SOOO EPICALLY SORRY! I never meant to abandon this story, but this month was review/midterm exam month so I really had to focus on my schoolwork. However, I only have one midterm left on Monday, and it's open note (YES!) so I finally could update! Thank Goddess for snow days! Okay, so I really hope you enjoy this chapter. Hopefully, I will be able to update again either sometime this weekend or on Tuesday.**

**AN2: Thanks to my anonymous reviewer Jessica!  
**

**So, without further ado, Enjoy:  
**

"No!" Shawn refused, for what must have been the thousandth time. John sighed at his stubbornness and Cory merely grinned.

"Shawn-" John began, his voice growing obviously impatient.

"There is no way I'm eating that!" Shawn declared, pointing an accusing finger at a pile of what was supposed to be food that was sitting in front of him. It was around noon and Shawn was waiting for the social worker to come by at two. He was nervous, especially since John told him that the social worker wanted to talk to him alone. Shawn had asked if John could be there with him, and John said not at first, but maybe after a couple of minuets.

"Shawn, you need to eat healthy to get better." John reminded him for the thousand-and-first time. John's voice was highly aggravated and Shawn's pout only served to aggravate him further.

"I want something from the vending machine." Shawn pouted. He knew that, eventually, John would just give in and get him something 'unhealthy'.

It wasn't the food that Shawn was actually upset about though. He really just wanted to talk to Cory alone for a couple of minuets and getting John out of the room was a key factor in that.

"Fine." John finally caved, throwing his hands up in defeat. "I'll be right back." He called over his shoulder as he left the room. Cory grinned at Shawn and Shawn rolled his eyes.

"What's so funny?" Shawn asked after moment.

"Nothing." Cory said, still smiling. "I just think it's cute."

"What's cute?" Shawn asked in confusion; that certainly hadn't been an answer he was expecting.

"How obvious it is that you and John care for each other." Cory answered, smirking as Shawn blushed.

"Shut up." Shawn muttered, then sighed. "That's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about." Shawn said, his voice serious. The tone in the room instantly changed and Cory leaned forward in his chair.

"Yeah?" Cory prodded after a moment of silence.

Shawn took a deep breath, then sighed again. "You know how that social worker's coming by?" Shawn began. Cory tensed, but nodded. "Well, I haven't really talked to John about it much but... do you think that..." Shawn hesitated. It was true that he and John hadn't spoken about the social workers arrival. Shawn wasn't stupid, he knew that he couldn't stay in the hospital forever, he would have to leave eventually. And, when he left, he currently had no home to go to. Shawn was hoping that he could move in with John again, but every second they got closer to the arrival of the social worker and, still, John never mentioned it.

"Shawn, you know that I want to help you, but I can't if you don't tell me what the problem is." Cory said logically, staring at Shawn in concern.

"Do you think John will adopt me?" Shawn forced out. His words came out jumbled and in a rush but, somehow, Cory understood them. A strange look passed over Cory's face, confusion maybe, before he answered.

"Of course. I mean, he hasn't said anything, but I just assumed..." Cory trailed off as John walked back into the room with, what looked like, one of every option from the vending machine.

"I wasn't sure what you'd want." John admitted sheepishly, dumping the food on the tray that was sitting on Shawn's lap and apparently not noticing the way the room went silent when he walked in.

Shawn and Cory exchanged glances, then began talking about inconsequential things to fill the silence as Shawn ate. While he ate, he considered what Cory said. Maybe that was why John never brought it up, he figured it was obvious that Shawn was going to move in with him? But, if that were the case, then wouldn't there still be things they would need to talk about? Such as, if Shawn would be using the same room, when they would pick up his stuff from the trailer, when should could leave the hospital, ect? None of the above had been mentioned. In fact, Shawn realized, no one had even mentioned in passing his leaving the hospital.

Shawn wanted to bring it up with John. He knew that Cory would leave the room if he asked him too, but Shawn was too nervous to ask. He didn't want to ask only to be rejected, which Shawn felt was inevitable. Still, he didn't want to go into this meeting with the social worker blindly so, Shawn gathered up his courage and locked eyes with Cory. Shawn jerked his head to the door and Cory made a hasty, and rather lame, excuse about needing to get more food and left.

"Something wrong, Shawn?" John asked, raising his eyebrows at Cory's highly conspicuous retreat.

"Yeah." Shawn began. His voice was shaky so he cleared his throat. "I wanted to talk to you about something." He continued anxiously.

"Okay." John said, his eyebrows furrowing at the seriousness of the situation.

"It's just... I need to know if I'm moving in with you or not." Shawn said boldly. Shawn's body tensed the second the words left his mouth. He was going to be rejected, he just knew it. After all, he was already messed up when he first moved in with John, but after everything he'd been through lately he was even more messed up; he was like some kind of damaged package or something.

John stared at Shawn incredulously and then said, "Shawn, of course. I mean, only if you wanted to." John hurried to add, feeling a slow dread work it's way through his stomach as he tried to consider the possibility that Shawn didn't want to move in with him. "If there's somewhere else you'd rather go-" John began, crestfallen.

"NO!" Shawn hastened to interrupt. John raised his eyebrows and Shawn continued. "I do... want to move in with you. It's just... well, we haven't talked about it or anything..." Shawn trailed off, feeling decidedly stupid. He should have known that John would want him to move in. John wouldn't have spent all his free time at the hospital with Shawn if he was just going to ditch him.

John sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He had just assumed that Shawn knew he wanted him to move in, and now John was feeling guilty for all the anxiety he must have caused. "I'm sorry Shawn. I thought you knew that I would want you to move in." John mentally smacked himself in the head. Of course Shawn wouldn't know, he'd been abandoned more times then John could count.

"No, it's fine." Shawn said, feeling an indescribable relief course through him. Shawn smiled at John happily and held out one of the candy bars that was sprawled over his bed in a type of peace offering. "Candy bar?"

1:59. Only one minuet left until the social worker was supposed to arrive. After his talk with John, Shawn's relief had only lasted about an hour. After that, he started fidgeting anxiously again and couldn't take his mind off of the upcoming meeting.

"Shawn, chill out." John said in exasperation. Shawn was shifting around in his bed, fidgeting and basically vibrating to the point where it tired John out just to look at him.

"Sure." Shawn said. In truth, he hadn't heard a word that John said. The clock turned to 2:00 and Shawn let out a long breath. He was feeling a bit better, physically anyways. It didn't hurt as much to move, but he knew that his face must still look pretty bad. He could feel the raised welts when he brought a hand up to his face, and he still caught Cory or John flinch when they thought he wasn't looking.

Suddenly, Mrs. Matthews walked in the room to talk Cory home for the afternoon. He would come back again tomorrow after school. Thankfully, Cory's mom had let him stay at the hospital today, rather then go to school, but he had to go back tomorrow.

Mrs. Matthews eyes were sad as they passed over Shawn's face. That was one thing that he hated about getting visits from her, and Mr. Matthews. Their eyes were always sad when they looked at him, and Mrs. Matthews eyes were always glassy- as if she were on the edge of tears.

"Hey, Shawn." She greeted him, trying to look cheerful and failing rather miserably. "How are you doing?" She asked with genuine concern.

"Fine." He told her, just as he told her every other time she came to visit- though she never seemed to believe him.

"Good luck, Shawnie." Cory said, patting Shawn's arm as he stood up.

"Thanks, man." Shawn said, waving as he and his mom left.

"Shawn, just remember that you need to be completely honest with the social worker, okay?" John said, his face pinched with worry and not a small amount concern.

"I know." Shawn said with exasperation, rolling his eyes. 'No,' Shawn thought sarcastically, 'I'm going to lie my butt off so I can go back to living with Verna.' Shawn rolled his eyes again.

"I'll be right in the waiting room if you need me." John told him, and just as Shawn was about to reply, a young women walked into the room. She was pretty, Shawn thought. Her dirty blond hair was pulled back in a tight, and professional looking bun. She had blue eyes that were partially hidden behind square, wire rimmed glasses. She was graying a navy blue business suit and smile softly as she entered the room.

"Hello." She said to John and Cory. This women had a strong voice, and she sounded very confident. "My name is Paige Burkley. You can call me Paige." Paige said, then shook hands with John.

"I guess, I should go now." John said awkwardly. He patted Shawn's shoulder gently, leaned down and whispered, "Good luck." In his ear. Standing up, John exited the room.

An uneasy silence befell the two left in the room and Shawn began playing with his bed sheets anxiously.

"There's no reason to be nervous." Paige informed him easily, sitting down in Cory's recently vacated chair. She pulled out a notepad and a pencil, then flicked through the notepads pages until she got to a clear one. "There are a few questions that I need to ask you."

"Okay." Shawn struggled to say. He took a deep breath and steeled himself.

Paige nodded, and began. "I wish I could say that we'll start off with some easy questions, but I don't think I have any of those for you." Paige said sympathetically, glancing at Shawn who gave her a weak smile. "Okay, has Chet or Verna Hunter every physically harmed you?" She began, her face professionally expressionless.

"Uh-" Shawn's throat seemed to close up at the question. He coughed and tried to clear his throat.

"Take your time." Paige told him gently. After a moment of silence, she asked, "Would you like some water?" Shawn nodded and Paige stood up. She returned a few minuets later with a bottle of water from the vending machine. "I figured you'd prefer this to tap." She said.

Shawn nodded and mumbled a "Thanks." He gulped down a bit of the water and Paige repeated the question. "Yes." Shawn answered firmly.

"Okay, when has Verna or Chet hunter ever touched you sexually?" She questioned.

Shawn sputtered and nearly choked on his water. "What?" He exclaimed in disgust. "NO!" He answered, horrified.

"I had to ask." Paige told him mildly. "When did the physical abuse begin?" And so it went. She would ask him questions about the abuse and Shawn answered to the best of his abilities. It was awkward, and definitely uncomfortable. But Paige told him to take his time and Shawn finally managed to answer all of her questions. At about 3:00 she stood up to leave and Shawn called her name. Paige hesitated by the foot of his bed. "Yes?"

"You didn't say about about where I'm going to go." Shawn told her.

"Well, I thought that you might want to talk about that closer to your release date." She said. Then, seeing Shawn's uncomprehending look, she reiterated, "When you get out of the hospital."

"No, lets talk about it now." He said. Paige nodded, and walked back over to the chair and sat down.

"Okay, well the usual procedure is we try to find another relative that you can live with. Do you know of any?" Paige asked, pulling out her notepad and pencil again.

"No." Shawn said, thinking of his family in the trailer park and knowing that, due to their criminal history, he would never be placed with them.

"Okay, then the next option is a foster home." Paige continued.

"NO!" Shawn immediately dismissed the idea. "Didn't John talk to you?" Shawn then asked.

Paige hesitated, and then said, "Yes. He gave me the adoption papers, and I would be willing to put them through the system for you, but there's a problem. In order for John to legally adopt you, your parents would have to sign over custody of you to him."

"So, what's the problem." Shawn asked, rolling his eyes. His parents wouldn't want to keep him, not after everything they did.

"Well, your parents said they would sign on one condition. If they get to see you again." Paige continued, watching Shawn intently as his face went from annoyance to stark fear.

"I-I-" Shawn stuttered. He wanted to live with John, he really did, but he did NOT want to see his parents. Shawn didn't think he _could _see them. When the police took his parents away, Shawn figured that that was it; he would never have to lay eyes on them again and he would be safe. _Now what am I going to do?_


	12. AN

**Warning: **THIS IS ONLY AN AUTHORS NOTE. IT IS NOT A CHAPTER FOR THE STORY!

Alright, usually I don't do this because I hate to post Author's Notes in the middle of a story and I don't really appreciate when others do either, but I've had quite a few reviews asking about this story and some are annoynomous so I thought that it would be best to just address everything in an AN.

So there are just a couple of things that I need to tell you guys and if you are interested in this story then I really would suggest you read this.

1) I am not abandoning this story. I will not abandon this story- I promise.

2) The reason that I haven't been updating lately is because I'm going through a serious crisis right now. My mom got us evicted from our apartment and only gave my brother and I two days to pack up all our stuff and move, so we're staying in a not-wonderful situation right now.

3) I really, **really** appreciate everyone reading and reviewing this story. It makes me so happy to see that people are reading and actually enjoying this- it means a lot to me. So, once again, thank you to every person who's reviewed and/or added this story to an alert or favorite list. It makes me smile every time I see them :)

4) I am hoping, really hoping, that I'll have some free time on Sunday and, if I do, then I will definitely use that time to write the next chapter. If not then I am soooo sorry!

Okay, I hope this covers everything. Oh, and in case I didn't mention this ;), thanks again to all my reviewers!


	13. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: Wow, I cannot belive how long it took me to update this story. Thank you so much to all the supportive comments and messages that I recieved, you have no idea how much that helped me. I'm finally settled in and am more then happy to start writing again. I hope too many people didn't forget about this story, and I really hope that this chapter is satisfactory for everyone.**

**Diclaimer: I do not own Boy Meets World or the characters.**

Shawn didn't want to see his parents again. He really, really didn't. However, he didn't want to go to a foster home either. Shawn knew that the best place for him right now was with John, but he couldn't see his parents again- not after everything they put him through. When Shawn told John what the social worker had said, John agreed with him whole-heartedly and made several phone calls to the social worker expressing his discomfort with this plan.

Cory was silent while Shawn bounced ideas off of him, trying to come up with a plan where he could go with John without having to see his parents. Most of his scheme's were crazy, but Cory let him vent, knowing that what Shawn really needed right now was a friend.

The social worker was supposed to come back in a few minuets and John could tell that Shawn was already working himself up before she had even stepped in the door. Shawn's fingers were tapping an anxious beat against his thigh and he was speaking to Cory so fast that John wondered if his IV was full of sugar today.

"Shawn, everything's going to be okay." John said, doing his best to be comforting, but really it was an empty promise. Shawn's eyes snapped onto John's and John almost flinched under the weight that he could see settled on Shawn.

"Really? How?" Shawn demanded, raising his eyebrows. John's mouth opened and closed a couple of times, before he finally sighed and looked away. The fact of the matter was, John didn't know that it was going to be okay. He didn't know if Shawn was going to end up with him or in a foster home, and he didn't know what would happen if Shawn decided to have that last meeting with his parents again. All he did know was that Shawn had no parents left that he could count on, and John wanted to be that person for him so desperately. John wanted to tell Shawn everything was going to be alright, mean it and make it happen.

"Cory, maybe you should go now." John suggested, glancing at the clock. Shawn had wanted Cory to stay when the social worker got back, but when John called Paige and asked she said that it would be inappropriate for Cory to stay. So they agreed that Cory could stay until the minuet she got there, and then come back the second she left.

"Yeah, okay." Cory stood up and nervously wiped his hands on his pants. He was nervous for his friend, probably more so then he had ever been. Cory didn't want Shawn to get hurt again, he had been through too much. "I'll be at home, so give me a call?" Cory requested and Shawn nodded sadly. He didn't want Cory to leave yet. Frankly, he didn't want Cory to leave at all. But there was nothing he could do about that so he watched with dismay as Cory left the room and sighed.

An uncomfortable silence settled over the two of them as they sat and waited. Shawn's eyes were glued to the door and his hands were wringing nervously in his lap. John was looking at the clock, then the door and then Shawn. He opened his mouth once, twice and looked as though he might say something but sighed and ended up staying silent.

A knock sounded at the door and Shawn flinched anxiously. John remained seated because he had already insisted he stay for this meeting and Paige had eventually agreed. Paige smiled as she walked into the room and nodded at John. John nodded back distractedly and kept his eyes trained on Shawn's face, waiting for a single sign of distress. Shawn's eyes had dropped to his hands which were now fidgeting with the bandages on his arms.

"Hey Shawn. How are you feeling?" Paige asked softly, takingt a seat opposite John. Shawn darted a glance at her before hurriedly looking away again.

"Fine." Shawn answered shyly, his voice soft and passive. John was suddenly overcame with the desire to scream. This wasn't his Shawn. His Shawn was never passive or anxious, and never spoke so fearfully. John wanted to literally _kill_ Shawn's parents for doing this to him, for causing him so much pain. Worst of all, John didn't know how to help. He didn't know what could possibly be said or done to comfort Shawn after the ordeal he'd been through.

"That's good." Paige said, attempting to be cheerful. She raised her eyes away from Shawn to John's face, her eyes asking him silently how Shawn truly was. John's face was tired and covered with a combination of frown and worry lines from the long days he had spent sitting in the same chair, trying to comfort Shawn and be strong for him. The look on his face seemed to have been answer enough and Paige nodded solemly, as if having expected Shawn to not be doing well.

"So, Shawn... I have some news for you." Paige began hesitantly, pulling a piece of paper out of the briefcase that was resting at her feet.

"What is it?" Shawn asked immediately, his voice nervous. Responding to his sudden fear, his heart started thudding quickly and painfully in his chest. Shawn silently prayed that there hadn't been some mishap that caused his parents to be released from jail. Or worse, what if they escaped? What if Verna and Chet escaped from jail and were coming after him right now, coming to kill him?

John watched wearily as Shawn worked himself further and further into a panic. Shawn's eyes were wide with fear and his breath was coming in short gasps as he struggled to control the various nightmares running through his head.

"Shawn, I need you to calm down." Paige spoke clearly and loudly, her voice firm. John slowly laid his hand on top of Shawn's, cautious in case it made his condition worse, and was incredibly surprised when Shawn instantly wrapped his hand around John's in a nearly bone crushing grip. John rubbed his thumb back and forth across the back of Shawn's hand while Paige spoke soothingly about taking deep, calming breaths.

It took a couple of minuets, but Shawn was able to eventually get a hold of himself. His cheeks were flushed with a combination of embarassment and lack of oxygen. When Shawn finally realized that he was still holding John's hand in a death grip he attempted to pull away, but John held onto him tightly and continued rubbing soothing circles on the back of his hand.

"I'm sorry." Shawn spoke, his eyes trained on the wall. He hadn't meant to freak out like that- to show such humiliating weakness. He didn't need them thinking that he was some kind of mental case and locking him up. And Shawn certainly didn't want John to realize what a mistake he was and give up on him. Not now... now when Shawn needed him the most.

"No, it's alright Shawn. I'm sorry for upsetting you- I should have got right to the point." Paige said briskly, her look pitying and understanding. It didn't appear to make Shawn feel any better though and he just shrugged.

"So, what's the news?" John interrupted. He knew that Shawn was embarrassed, and while he wanted nothing more then to reassure him that he hadn't done anything wrong, right now John thought that the best thing for Shawn would be to find out what's going on.

"Well, I don't know if you know but, well, you have a brother." Paige said, plunging right into the news. She passed the paper over to Shawn, and on it was a picture with some information. The picture was of a man with brown hair and brown eyes, who resembled Shawn greatly. Shawn skimmed over the information, not really taking anything in. Paige must be wrong, Shawn thought, he didn't have a brother. He knew he didn't.

"Sorry lady, but you're wrong. I don't have a brother." Shawn passed the paper back to Paige, rolling his eyes in annoyance. She upset him over this? It's not as if Shawn didn't wish he had a brother, because he had wished that a thousand times, but he knew the difference between fantasies and reality. And the idea of him having a brother was a fantasy.

"Shawn, this man is Jack Hunter." Paige passed the picture back to Shawn and refused to accept it when he tried to hand it back. "His father is Chet Hunter- who also happens to be your father. He's 21, and our agency has contacted him to ask if he was interested in meeting you. Jack responded immediately that he would love to meet you, and agreed to fly over once we set a date. We didn't tell him anything about your situation yet." Paige laid out all the facts for Shawn without hesitation. She knew it was a lot of information, and she also knew that she would probably end up repeating most of what she just said at least half a dozen times, but Paige also knew that the quicker Shawn digested this information the better. This was his only shot to stay out of a foster home and avoid the meeting with his parents.

"Wait, why wasn't I informed about this?" John asked, his voice raised with anger. He was glaring at Paige now, his mind racing. If this Jack kid really is Shawn's brother, then would that mean that Shawn would move in with him? Would Shawn go away to whatever state Jack lived in? No, John immediately reassured himself, he wouldn't leave Cory, himself and the rest of the Matthews behind. Just then, another thought occurred to John: what if Jack didn't like Shawn, or vise versa? What if this just created more problems rather then solved them?

"Because, no matter how close you and Shawn are, you aren't family." Paige said bluntly. "Now, Shawn, I realize that you're going to need some time to think about this-" Paige began, but was interuptted.

"Why hasn't he tried to find me?" Shawn asked, his voice soft and vulnerable. He was staring at the picture as if looking into another world, a completely different reality. His face was pinched with hurt and Shawn's eyes were squinted as his eyes flickered back and forth over the paper, as if rereading every piece of information would help him understand something that couldn't possibly be understood.

"Shawn, we didn't ask anything like that. But I'm sure he has a good answer, and besides he agreed to meet you-"

"Only because he thinks I'm some charity case." Shawn said, his face twisting in disgust as his eyes zeroed in on Jack's rich-kid upbringing. "I can't do this."

"This is an important decision Shawn. If you choose not to meet Jack, then your only options are foster care, or talking to your parents." Paige said, standing up and snapping her briefcase closed. She was leaving the picture and information with Shawn. "Now, you have until tomorrow afternoon to make a decision about this."

Shawn shoved the picture face down on the bed beside him and crossed his arms over his chest, his lips pouting out stubbornly. He wasn't going to be someone's charity case, he wasn't! After everything Shawn had been through, he thought that he at the very least deserved to keep some of his dignity.

Paige seemed to be waiting for Shawn to say something and John ran a hand over his face in a rough gesture of anxiety. "We'll give you a call." He finally said when it became obvious that Shawn wasn't willing to say anything.

Paige nodded and said her goodbyes. As soon as the door closed behind her Shawn exploded, "Can you believe her? She just drops this bombshell and expected me to want to meet up with some spoiled rich-kid who doesn't give a damn about me!"

"You don't know that Shawn." John tried to be reasonable, but Shawn wasn't having any of it. He pushed himself away from John and shook his head.

"I do know that. If he wanted something to do with me before then he would have talked to me or tried to find me, but he didn't. I'm not going to let myself become someone's charity!" Shawn exclaimed, his face flushing with anger. He couldn't believe it, he couldn't take it all in. He had a brother, whom he never heard of before today, who grew up in a nice, privileged home, with two nice, loving parents and knew he existed but never tried to find him. And now Shawn was suddenly expected to believe that he wanted to meet up and chat? No way!

"Dammit Shawn! You need to really think about this!" John shouted, standing up so quickly that his chair was shoved back against the wall. Shawn's eyes widened. He had never been afraid of John before, he had never felt the need to, but there was a certain blaze in John's eyes that frightened Shawn just a little. "What are you going to do if you don't meet him? Huh, have you even thought about that?" John demanded.

"No." Shawn whispered. He had heard what Paige said, he knew what saying no to Jack meant, but he wasn't thinking about that. All he was thinking about was another family member that let him down- only this was different. Sure, Chet and Verna had turned really bad at the end- but they were good to him for thirteen long years. Jack knew about him his entire life and never found him. That was different.

"Well, you should. If you make a serious decision just because you're assuming something about Jack that may or may not be true then you'll regret it for the rest of your life." A dead silence settled over the small hospital room and John sighed. He ran a hand through his hair, said, "I'm gonna go get some coffee." And was out the door before Shawn even thought to protest.

Shawn sat there for several minuets, numb and unthinking. He couldn't process this, he didn't _want_ to process this. Finally, Shawn made a decision and picked up the phone next to his bed and dialed. "Cory, can you come over. I need to talk to you?"


End file.
